A decade ago, sometime during the great recession, I owned a computer repair company. One year after having a modestly successful year, I treated myself to a new “executive” $99 chair from Office Depot. It had one adjustment—up and down. Life was pretty good. I had a private office, an executive chair, and a growing business. At some point during the next year I started to get sore legs. After about 20 minutes of sitting, it would feel like the blood was getting cut off and my legs would start to tingle. I’m not talking about the good kind of Chris Matthews “thrill going up my leg” tingle. But rather a sharp stinging that was very uncomfortable and painful; so much so that I could only sit at my desk for an hour or so a day. My ability to do the necessary work at my business started to suffer.
Leap Lumbar Adjustment
Finding The Leap
Around this time my brother, Jason, purchased a business in Boise by the name of Office Environment Company. He mentioned to me he could help my leg problem with a new chair. I came to look at the chairs and the $799 price tag for some was shocking. “What in the world is in this chair? Is it lined with gold foil or something? How could it possibly cost this much!” My brother convinced me it would be worth the price and soon I found myself driving home a brand-new Steelcase Leap chair. I swapped out my old executive chair for the Leap but didn’t feel relief right away because I still had a pinch point right above my knees that would cause numbness.
So I called my brother and he drove out to my office and spent some time reviewing the ergonomic adjustments with me. I hadn’t realized how many adjustments the chair could make. We ended up making the right adjustments that relieved the pressure and voila, I was able to sit without pain again. With a proper task chair I was now able to sit and work for eight plus hours in a day. Being able to increase my office productivity from one hour to eight hours a day was life and business saving. I have since sold the business, but I did keep the chair. And amazingly the chair looks as good today as it did the day I purchased it.
A special thanks to my brother for convincing me to spend money on a good chair and to Steelcase for making the chair that saved my business.
Scott Galloway
President
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It’s time for a fundamentally better learning experience
Even before the pandemic, education was undergoing a transformation that will go on long after the virus threat subsides. The experiences students, educators and administrators have had during the pandemic has to have accelerated and amplified trends in education that were already in motion. Online and blended learning has revealed inequities and how many physical learning environments simply can’t meet the pedagogical needs and technology demands. Additionally, wellbeing has suffered, and students and teachers have struggled, unable to teach or learn effectively.
What Students and Educators Need and Expect to Learn Better
Everyone has had a vastly different experience teaching and learning from home. Those experiences shape their expectations for what they want the learning experience to be like in the future.
Prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, Steelcase Learning researchers used multiple methods to understand the value of blended learning and wellbeing to educational outcomes and how space can play a role to ensure an enhanced experience. Prior to COVID-19, researchers visited both K-12 schools and universities, interviewed educators and students, observed blended learning models and built prototypes. Since the onset of the pandemic, they’ve used a remote diary platform to assess how online learning is going for teachers and students. Steelcase also conducted multiple studies in 10 countries to better understand the impact the pandemic has had on workers. Synthesizing all these studies uncovered five overarching needs that will drive macro shifts in the overall learning and work experience and lead to new ways of planning and designing learning environments.
To Be Safe and Feel Safe
Educational institutions didn’t have to consider how to mitigate the spread of disease, but people are now pandemic aware. They have new expectations about air quality, facility cleanliness, social distancing, density and adherence to safety protocols that did not exist prior to the pandemic.
A Deeper Sense of Belonging
Students, educators and administrators all report a feeling of isolation. To address this moving forward, educational institutions will need a more human-centered approach to education that creates a sense of belonging. When a sense of belonging is lacking, both educators and students are negatively impacted. Students’ lack of wellbeing, for example, is related to lower achievement, retention and graduation rates, which directly affect funding. Meanwhile, educator burnout results in higher absenteeism, poor wellbeing, increased healthcare costs and higher turnover rates.
To Be Effective
Online learning presents new challenges when compared to a traditional classroom. According to a McKinsey Report, a significant portion of students report that COVID-19 had affected their readiness, willingness, or ability to attend a higher education institution. For example, 30% of high school students feel academically unprepared for university. Students’ ability to succeed in a remote-learning environment also differs greatly by income levels. Less than half (40%) of students from lower-income households report being able to get the necessary equipment for remote learning compared with 72% of students from high-income households.
Holistic Comfort to Learn Better
A more holistic approach to comfort is another expectation students, educators and administrators now have as many had to learn, teach and work from sofas, kitchen tables and even beds. Learning environments will need to support physical comfort, as well as emotional and cognitive comfort. People will need a range of postures, settings and the ability to move, as well as an emotionally safe and supportive culture for teaching and learning. Learning spaces should be designed to create a sense of inclusiveness and community and provide calming spaces for respite.
Greater Control
The Steelcase Learning Environment Evaluation (LEE) study has found both students and instructors have reported they want more control over their learning environments. People want options so they can choose where to learn or work and they want the ability to adapt spaces based on what they’re doing. The LEE study reports a 92% increase in students who say they often or always move furniture to support their learning. Instructors report a 47% increase when asked if they agree or strongly agree that they want to be able to move furniture into new layouts. Access to mobile furniture and different seating options and postures promote a greater sense of student agency.
Macro Shifts In The Learn Better Experience
To be able to create better teaching and learning experiences that provide students and educators with what they want and expect, institutions will need to pay attention to four macro shifts in how they think about space.
Design Safer Schools
Behavioral strategies, such as mask wearing and distancing, need to be augmented with changes to the built environment. Educational institutions can make their buildings even safer by intentionally designing the built environment to help mitigate disease transmission. Understanding how pathogens move through an environment will help educational institutions develop new systemic strategies to help prevent infections.
Design for Effectiveness
Students and educators have struggled throughout the pandemic. Learning and teaching effectiveness have dropped. Moving forward students and educators will need multi-modal learning environments that balance individual and group needs and multiple modes of learning. For example, libraries can be designed to support group work and not just individual study. Schools will also need to provide spaces that enable better hybrid and blended learning experiences.
Design to Inspire
People who have lived through a crisis want inspiration — they need to be a part of something meaningful. Educational institutions will need to create a sense of belonging and foster community. When students are able to connect with their instructors and have access to inspiring spaces that build a strong community, this can lead to better learning outcomes. Intentionally-designed learning environments can foster meaningful interactions and signal that change and adaptation are part of their culture and something to be embraced.
Design for Flexibility
Historically designed for permanence, buildings have been dominated by fixed architecture, power and furnishings. Going forward, educational institutions will offer more flexible environments that can adapt easily to accommodate multiple learning modes. Schools will need to embrace multi-use spaces that can support diverse types of activities. Furnishings will easily move to allow spaces to expand and contract as needed.
While living through a crisis has not been easy on anyone, it has accelerated changes that were already underway to improve the learning experience. Leaders in education can use this moment as a catalyst for reinventing learning spaces and explore new approaches for delivering quality education.
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What sets apart real estate development firm Rafanelli & Nahas? They create incredible buildings and manage them for the long haul. While many companies develop land then move on, this firm owns its properties and provides long-term management and maintenance. In the words of partner Scott Schoenherr, “We spoil our tenants, and our buildings stay full.” This unique outlook has allowed Rafanelli & Nahas to develop over one million square feet of landmark properties in the treasure valley.
11th & Idaho
One such landmark property is their new building on 11th St. and Idaho in Boise. This exciting addition to their holdings is a ten-story office building with a rooftop deck. Designed by award-winning firm Perkins + Will, the 11th St. building boasts a 5,000 square foot lobby. It also includes floor to ceiling glass walls throughout each floor. However, the building is not just beautiful; it is also exceptionally well made. This Class A+ building not only provides excellent panoramic views of the city and landscape, but achieves LEED Gold certification.
Achieving LEED certification for any project takes a great deal of time, money, and dedication to sustainable building practices. A couple of significant ways the 11th St. building achieved LEED includes its energy-efficient windows and neolith stone cladding made of 100% natural materials. They offer superior resistance to UV rays and form the stunning black exterior of the building.
Lobby
The Rooftop Deck
Yet, the 11th St. building’s exceptional quality is just one aspect of what makes it so special in Boise. As Schoenherr says, “When you own your stuff forever, you treat it a little more like you treat your house and less like you treat an investment. We’re a big believer that what makes an office building really special isn’t any one thing or two things; it’s a thousand thing. Having an architecturally significant building is important to us, and we think it’s important to tenants too.”
Yet, the building’s exceptional quality is just one aspect of what makes it so special in Boise. As Schoenherr says, “When you own your stuff forever, you treat it a little more like you treat your house and less like you treat an investment. We’re a big believer that what makes an office building really special isn’t any one thing or two things; it’s a thousand things. Having an architecturally significant building is important to us, and we think it’s important to our tenants too.”
One such notable aspect is the rooftop deck. At the beginning of the project, Perkins & Will encouraged the firm to include a rooftop deck. To cut costs, Rafanelli & Nahas declined. However, after touring LinkedIn’s headquarters in San Francisco, they learned just how vital a rooftop deck could be. LinkedIn’s HR Manager changed their minds by sharing, “When I’m interviewing someone that I really want to hire, this [the rooftop deck] is where I do it. This [experience] is what the young people want now.” Today the 11th St. building boasts a beautiful space with IPE wood decking that no other Class A office building in Boise has.
Rooftop Deck
“Having an architecturally significant building is important to us.”
Making Space For A Park
With such attention paid to creating a beautiful building for their tenants, one would think Rafanelli & Nahas would stop there. On the contrary, the firm’s long-term vision has driven it to beautifully shape Boise’s culture. Working hand-in-hand with CCDC and the City of Boise, the firm will be subleasing space adjacent to the building for an incredible new public park.
What is currently being referred to as the Westside Urban Park will have a variety of coveted amenities. With a shift toward residential infill, having a public space within walking distance of new residences is important for the city. Artist, Matthew Mazzotta was hired by the City of Boise Arts and History to determine and create what the public prioritized in a new park. The response was in overwhelming support of a public art feature, flexible event space, and great food and dining.
The final design incorporates all these things with a large, green lawn and amphitheater, plenty of hardscapes for outdoor dining, a food truck and farmer’s market accessible parking lot, and a beautiful art feature. Seeking to reflect a cherry tree in bloom, Mazzotta’s featured piece “Gentle Breeze”, is a large, pink, tree-like sculpture set upon a small berm. The playful, attention grabbing color makes it a beautiful focal point for this new public space.
Park Rendering by CCDC
Stewardship For Boise
Through its quality construction, exceptional management, and community focus, it is no wonder Rafanelli & Nahas have been so successful in Boise. But at the heart of the firm is a deep-rooted love and even stewardship for Boise and its culture. It is not often that you encounter a developer that takes on the responsibility to up the game on architecture in a city. While many firms are willing to forfeit quality to get something built, Rafanelli & Nahas is fighting against that. They hope that design review, CCDC, and planning and zoning will look to buildings like theirs and ask, “Why would we allow anything less to be built in our downtown?”
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And other amazing talents of modern day architects
In an era of HGTV and DIY projects where anyone can design an impressive space, we interviewed three architects to learn why architects matter to projects of all shapes and sizes.
Miranda Anderson Associate Clinical Professor University of Idaho
University of Idaho
Miranda Anderson, the interior architecture professor at the University of Idaho became interested in architecture in the sixth grade. Before teaching, she primarily designed K-12 schools in Idaho and surrounding states. After doing some historic preservation projects she focused on interior architecture and development. As she says, “The greenest building is the one that is already built. We need to think more creatively and innovatively about the way we use space and remember that a lot of existing buildings could do with a little creative transformation.
Miranda believes that the special thing architects and designers can bring to the table is their holistic view of a project. They are trained to be creative problem solvers that can look at things from a variety of perspectives. Architects are thinking about designing elements that can absorb sound or improve lighting which both have incredibly positive impacts on people. They are planning for the well-being of the whole person.
She also believes that architects have a responsibility to society. “A client might say ‘I really want XYZ,’ and we know from experience that that has some negative impacts. It is our job to identify and inform the public and our clients as best we can on the impacts of their decisions.” From her experience, some people start projects without architects and do not ask questions soon enough. They are not aware of potential health, safety, and welfare issues with the project until they get caught by code inspectors. Architects and designers have typically already thought of that.
Ann Wozniak Director of Architecture Boise State University
Boise State Universiy
Since 2014, Ann Wozniak has been the Boise State University Architect and Director of Architecture. Growing up in the military, her family moved a lot. While living in places like Nairobi, Kenya and San Francisco, California, she was exposed to different cultures and architecture. At the age of 12 those experiences made her want to help people live a little bit better and a little differently. Architecture is the way she chose to do that. “I’ve always felt like architecture sets up culture and society and provides spaces that not only meet the basic need for shelter, but also propel society toward improved health. It is my hypothesis that the more spaces we have that encourage social interaction, the healthier we are both mentally and sometimes physically.
For Ann, the thing that makes architects important is their background, knowledge, and experience. They understand proportion and scale and what works functionally in a space. That requires years of experience that you can not easily teach somebody. Part of that includes learning to be open to new ideas. “It can be hard to listen to the client and not go forward with an agenda. I have learned that sometimes the design will be way better. While I live through one lens, everybody else has their own lens with a different shade and a different color. I think those are all valuable and I have to remember that I’m not the only one experiencing the space.”
Brad Smith Architect BVA
BVA
Brad Smith has been working with BVA on a variety of commercial projects. The company self-performs a majority of tenant improvements inside their buildings and Brad is the architect of record who signs off on everything. He discovered his love for architecture in high school soon after his family moved to Boise. When they were searching for a home, he saw lots of fliers full of floorplans. He then had fun creating his own and has never looked back.
Brad believes that it is the architect’s job to be a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to designing. “You have to keep the built environment, society, social welfare, building science, and economic aspects in mind when working. That is what goes into that holistic approach for architecture.” Brad also understands his responsibility to clients. “Getting to know what doctors or attorneys need, you have to have a little bit of knowledge about everything. We are master builders who create bridges linking people together and building community.”
According to Brad, architecture is one of the best professions. Between meeting new people, and combining art with science and technology, it is a great profession. The most important thing Brad has learned through his career is very similar to Ann. “If you can put someone’s needs first, above your own or above what your vision is, within the boundaries of the built environment, health, safety, and welfare, then it’s going to be better for everybody.
So why do architects matter? They see the unseen and improve our world because of it.
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