Ahn and Angarano Present at 2022 ERAPPA Conference on Schine Student Center

Calvin Ahn, Principal, and Susanne Angarano, Principal / Senior Interior Designer, co-presented “All are Welcome Here: Transforming the Schine Student Center” at the 2022 ERAPPA Conference on Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at the Turning Stone Resort. Joining Calvin and Susanne for the presentation was Robert Hradsky, Vice President for the Student Experience and Dean of Students, Division of the Student Experience, at Syracuse University.

ERAPPA is the Eastern Region of APPA: Leadership in Educational Facilities. The Eastern Region consists of institutions from: The United States (Washington DC, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine) and Canada (Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia). Throughout its history ERAPPA has been dedicated to supporting the common interests of planning, maintenance and operations of facilities within the region’s educational institutions.

Overview of the Session:
During these challenging times, the importance of student services space like this student center are critical to promoting mental health for students when these opportunities have become few and far between. Integrating changing trends and expectations into renovations can be daunting. Not only have physical spaces been transformed, but also changing the way students engage through lenses of diversity, equity and inclusion.

Challenges familiar to many campuses, Schine Student Center presented significant hurdles: confusing circulation, hard-to-find student programs and resources, outdated dining, and poor accommodation of those with differing abilities and backgrounds.

Attendees learned how the nexus of principles of Universal Design, student-centered design, and planning for diversity, equity, and inclusion can increase student engagement while advancing a welcoming campus experience and how diversity and inclusion change the process of design and the design itself.