Workshop to probe school building redesign

A Feb. 29 workshop at Mississippi State will provide historical and practical insights into redesigning and renovating aging school buildings.

The 8 a.m.-4 p.m. limited attendance program will take place in the Mitchell Memorial Library conference room. The university's Educational Design Institute, a partnership between the College of Education and School of Architecture, is sponsor.

The EDI was created in 1998 to promote the development of safe, accessible, learner-centered environments. It works in collaboration with students, parents, teachers, administrators, school boards, and communities.

"This workshop will provide design professionals and others with specific strategies for replanning, redesigning and renovating older structures," said EDI project director John Poros.

The federal General Accounting Office has estimated that "approximately 25,000 American schools need extensive repair or replacement," he added.

Other sponsors include the Tennessee Valley Authority, Electric Power Research Institute of Palo Alto, Calif., Carothers Construction Co. of Water Valley, and the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

Workshop topics and speakers include:

• The relationship between educational programs and school design, including planning for new educational needs in older schools, led by EDI director Jeff Lackney;
• Architectural guidelines and permitting processes involving structures on the Mississippi Landmark Buildings list, led by MDAH's Thomas Blackwell;
• Replacing or retrofitting existing energy systems, led by Bruce Lindsay of EPRI; and
• Ways redesign professionals can work best with contractors and construction managers, led by Carothers' Stephen Hartsuff.