LEARN! TOUR! EXPLORE!
The School Equipment Show is your place for training and professional development. These top-quality sessions will help you keep abreast of the latest developments in school construction, design trends, and sales techniques. Master new skills, increase sales, and plan for the future!
Wednesday, November 17
9:00 – 10:15 AM
Specialty Spaces: Cafeterias and Food Service
Gary Jelin, TMP Architecture, Inc.
With First lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campaign to "raise a healthier generation of kids," the school cafeteria becomes more important than ever. More than 31 million school children participate every day in the national school lunch program, and many children consume at least half of their daily calories at school. For Let's Move! to succeed, our school's cafeterias must offer not only healthier lunch options, but must also provide a real-world connection with life outside of school. Kids are accustomed to eating in places like shopping mall food courts, airports, and sports arenas. In this session, we will explore the design elements used in creating a social, dynamic environment with healthy kids in mind.
Educational Interiors
Can the use of color, texture and patterns, floor and wall coverings, lighting and acoustics affect educational outcomes? Does the selection and arrangement of the furniture and furnishing detract from, or support the educational mission? Is the school a place where students want to go? In this session we will review the research behind good interior design. We will also look at a number of projects whose unique interior designs make these schools a special place for teachers and students alike.
10:30 – 11:45 AM
Green, Healthy, High Performance Schools (For the Rest of Us)
Bill Orr, Executive Director, Collaborative for High-Performance Schools
A total of $16.4 billion in K-12 school construction was completed in 2009, and many of those buildings were designed as high performance/green schools. Unfortunately, these buildings are the exception, not the rule. There are 98,793 K-12 public schools in the U.S., and most 40+ years old. These existing schools serve the majority of our youth. In this session we will look not only at the current trends in green building design, but at what can be done to green existing buildings so that every school can be a high performance school.
This workshop will cover several resources available through the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) to help existing schools become high performance schools, including:
- The CHPS High Performance Products Database - an online, searchable database open to the public. The Database includes products that help schools meet CHPS and other green building criteria, and deliver environmental and health benefits to their occupants.
- The CHPS Operations Report Card (ORC) - a program that benchmarks the current performance of existing schools, provides a report card of results and makes suggestions for improvement.
- CHPS for Modernizations - learn how CHPS specifically addresses major and minor modernizations, new buildings on existing campuses, and additions. Case studies on how school districts across the country are using the CHPS Criteria to renovate or modernize their schools will be included.
Funding Projects in the Education Market Through Traditional and Non-Traditional Sources
Lisa Regan and Jeffrey Phillips, The National Center for the Learning Environment
School Districts are being plagued by diminishing funds and are coping by cutting their teaching staff and postponing major purchases and projects. This lack of funding does impact the learning environment for our students! In this session you will learn there is funding available. We will examine funding opportunities from public and private sources and discuss how your district or school might benefit. Be prepared to walk away with lots of ideas and resources to begin your funding package!
9:00 – 11:45 AM 
School Presentation/Tour:
Verrado High School and
Litchfield Verrado Middle School
Paul Winslow, Orcutt Winslow
Sponsored by Arizona Chapter of CEFPI
Join Paul Winslow from the architectural firm of Orcutt Winslow as he leads a discussion and tour of two recently completed school projects. Verrado High School is Agua Fria High School District's fourth high school in the master planned community of Verrado, AZ. Not only is its setting unique, but also the school's curriculum delivery strategy fosters partnerships for a balanced, project-based, real-world learning environment. A major focus of the design is sustainability. Mr. Winslow will explain his design philosophy that intuitively addresses issues of equity, energy-efficiency, and healthy indoor-outdoor learning environments.
The second school is Litchfield Verrado Middle School, a campus built in two phases. The first phase includes the classroom pods, administration, media center, kitchen/dining and play fields. The second phase includes the cafeteria, gymnasium/lockers and six additional classrooms. The site is located in the foothills of the White Tank Mountains and slopes approximately 30' from one end to another. Join this tour and find out how Orcutt Winslow met the design challenges to produce an environment that fosters cooperative learning. Attendees will meet for a short discussion period before boarding a bus that will take them to the two schools. The bus will return to the Convention Center no later than 12:00 noon.
Please note: There is no fee for this tour, but you must register by checking the appropriate box on the registration form so that we can reserve your seat on the bus.
Thursday, November 18
9:00 – 10:15 AM
The Growing Community College Market
Did you know that community colleges serve close to half of the undergraduate students in the United States? They are an American invention that puts publicly funded higher education at close-to-home facilities. More affordable than a traditional four-year university, community colleges are quickly becoming the institution of choice where students can receive a solid academic foundation with credits that transfer to the state universities, or a career-focused education. In this session we will hear from the experts and find out more about community colleges, how they are funded, and the types of facilities that house them.
Equal Access for All: ADA-Compliance and Universal Design
The Americans with Disabilities Act, a law enacted by Congress in 1990 and amended in 2008, made sure that no individual would be discriminated against on the basis of disability with regards to the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, or accommodations of any place of public accommodation—including schools. Schools needed to be barrier-free and accessible. But why design only for the disabled—why not simplify life for everyone by making products and the built environment more usable by as many people as possible at little or no extra cost. This is the goal of universal design. In this session we will explore the benefits of taking a holistic approach and making access equal for all.
Expand Your Purchasing Power Through Co-ops
PanelWhile many districts go it alone, others are turning to local, regional and national co-ops that can produce volume price cuts, lower administrative costs and provide faster turnaround. In this session we discuss the importance of the procurement process and how national purchasing co-ops can create a business and service alliance between buyers and suppliers. Find out how your district can save time and money by providing cooperative contracts and procurement support for school furniture, fixtures, and equipment.
10:30 – 11:45 AM
Trends in Education and Design: Creating the Future
Deb Moore, School Planning & Management Magazine, College Planning & Management Magazine
Constant social, economic, technological and educational delivery changes make it harder for administrators and architects to plan for the future. Looking at present-day trends can give us some ideas as to how schools may evolve, but don't tell the whole story. In this session we will look at the current trends in construction and design, the latest research on the learning environment, the role furniture plays in creating an effective learning environment, and other forces that will drive future school design.
Changing Learning Environments by Changing Furniture/Design
Alfred Sena, Rio Rancho Public Schools; Jeff Billings, Paradise Valley School District; and Lee Bauer, MA, The National Center for the Learning Environment Sponsored by the Southwest Region of CEFPI
In today's economic climate, it is not always feasible for a school or district to build new or renovate and our children's learning spaces are built to last a minimum of fifty years. With rapidly changing technology and teaching methods, it is imperative that our schools have the ability to be brought into the 21st century. By looking at actual case studies, this session will discuss less drastic measures such as furnishings, equipment, and integration of technology into the classroom that are less expensive but highly effective.
Technology's Effect on Teaching/Learning Styles and Classroom Design
Panel Lead by Glenn Meeks, Meeks Educational TechnologiesPicture this... student desks in straight rows; a teacher standing at the front of the room lecturing to the class; pencils, papers and blackboards; no conversation or interaction between students. This is the classroom of the past, not of the future. Today's classroom is a space where technology and a digital culture converge. The arrangement of that space can contribute to—or detract from—the task at hand. in this session our panel of experts will discuss new and emerging technologies, the challenges faced with integrating them into today's classroom, and the impact these technologies have on the teaching and learning environment.
Workshop information is subject to change.