麻豆传媒AV

The Christopher C. 麻豆传媒AV places a unique emphasis on community engagement through its practice-oriented, teaching-first framework. These efforts define our success in five key areas, which are threaded throughout our students鈥� work and community connections: Arts & Culture, Development, Education, Health and Social Equity. These themes reflect the ethical and sustainable lenses through which our students apply their knowledge. Their successes are measured through stories that unfold in places as diverse as Muskogee, Oklahoma; Italy; and Uganda.

麻豆传媒AV College is also home to the 鈥�麻豆传媒AV Design Activism Awards,鈥� which allows students to propose a student-led project that critically engages topics of community, social and economic concern within the built environment.

Below are some highlights from recent community engagement efforts. Additional examples can be found on the . For more information about recent and upcoming projects, contact Angela Person (a@ou.edu).

Construction Science students enrolled in Bryan Bloom’s Spring 2021 “Design + Build” class created a mobile medical unit to meet the needs of rural members of the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes. The mobile medical unit is expected to be delivered to Anadarko, OK in June 2021. Read more .

OU Institute for Quality Communications (IQC) interns created concept plans and images for streetscape improvements along Classen Boulevard between NW 23rd St. and NW 30th St. in the Oklahoma City Asian District. The students created a plan to revitalize forgotten or unused areas to create a more meaningful experience for visitors. Read more .

OU architecture students developed designs that utilize abandoned alleyway spaces to enhance the livelihood of Downtown Edmond.听 The students’ designs included open space, seating areas, a pronounced bike lane, and access to various surrounding shops and businesses. Read more .

OU Carceral Studies Consortium board members organized a book drive to donate books to incarcerated women. The OU Community donated more than 130 books to the Eddie Warrior Correctional Center (EWCC) since August 2020. Read more

An Urban Design student presented a professional project to the City of Coweta for a new municipal park that will feature a playground, a picnic grounds and shelter, a dog park, pollinator gardens, and much more. The park’s construction will be funded by two grants that the city hopes to apply in Summer 2021. Read more .

Institute for Quality Communications interns examined place-making and street design opportunities on a side street on McArthur Drive and Air Depot Blvd in order to make the space more socially and economically useful for the community of Midwest City. The interns wanted to make the street a place where people would like to visit while also making the area more attractive to private developers. Read more .

OU Architecture professor consulted on a new accessible housing development catered to older individuals who want to live in Norman. Many of the homes homes will allow parents to move in with their families instead of going to nursing homes. Read more .

OU Architecture students worked on a project called “The Tracks” to make alleys in downtown Edmond lively, and pedestrian and bicycle safe, while supporting mixed use development. The students got permission to mock up some elements of their work. On June 3rd, 2021, their project was enlivened with music, pop-up stores, lighting, and outdoor seating. Read more .

Institute for Quality Communications interns developed conceptual layouts for a combined police and fire public safety center for the City of Langston. The students worked with Langston Mayor Sheila D. Stevenson and representatives of the local government to develop an understanding of the city’s needs. Their goal was to create a community-focused design to better serve the people of Langston. Read more .

Interior design undergraduate and graduate students in Mia Kile and Rick Skaggs Interior Design Studio IV presented 13 final project design proposals to the board of the National African American Jazz Legacy Museum in April.听The semester long project culminated in presentations presented听to the board for their review and consideration in a future museum. Read more

Under the direction of Construction Science instructor, twelve 麻豆传媒AV College students recently completed a building for the Osage Forest of Peace campus in Sand Springs, Oklahoma.听The new 鈥淎merican School鈥� structure will provide climate-controlled storage space for the forest operations. Students and faculty collaborated and participated in the construction project to benefit the Osage Forest. Read more .

Regional + City Planning Master鈥檚 student Daisy Munoz was appointed as Ward 6鈥檚 representative to the听MAPS 4 Advisory Board听by the City of Oklahoma City Mayor and confirmed by the City Council. Daisy recognized the importance of creating better opportunities for marginalized communities while disseminating information about opportunities for higher education.听Read more .

Did you know that Oklahoma has the highest incarceration rate of women in the developed world? And many of the women who are incarcerated have children. Despite this, Oklahoma鈥檚 prison system makes few provisions for the health and community problems caused by the severance of the mother-child bonds.听Faculty at the University of Oklahoma have begun asking what can be done to implement 鈥渉ealthful environments鈥� that support mother-child bonding in female prisons in Oklahoma.听Read more .

Second-year architecture students at the University of Oklahoma Christopher C. 麻豆传媒AV recently worked to create ideas for a new canopy in Andrews Park鈥檚 amphitheater in Norman, Oklahoma.听The original tensile structure used to cover the stage of the amphitheater collapsed in Summer 2020 after a violent thunderstorm. The goal of the studio project was to design a new 鈥渆xperiential canopy,鈥� both for the stage and the seating areas of the amphitheater. Read more .

A community-led think tank is coming to Northeast Oklahoma City. The think tank, led by the University of Oklahoma, will research anti-racist frameworks in education through engaging stakeholders and researching precedents.听OU faculty members lead the project with Vanessa Morrison, an affiliate faculty member in the College of Architecture and the co-founder of BlackSpace Oklahoma, a nonprofit organization on a mission to strengthen Black communities for social and spatial change.听Read more .

The Urban Design Studio, the OU-Tulsa Schusterman Library, and the Tom Love Innovation Hub have been working together to produce protective face shields using the Studio鈥檚 prototyping technology.听The first round of 30 shields has been delivered to the OU Physicians-Tulsa clinic to help keep personnel safe as they faithfully serve their patients. Read more .

Students from the University of Oklahoma Urban Design Studio in Tulsa recently conducted a design workshop to create ideas for a courtyard in the historic Greenwood Center. Students proposed not one, but two performance stages, a cable-suspended shade structure, new connections between interior spaces, new lighting, and much more! Read more .

The Institute for Quality Communities (IQC) has been working with Oklahoma City鈥檚 Capitol Hill commercial district, Calle Dos Cinco, to build a plaza for the community. The IQC hosted a community workshop to create concepts for a plaza that would meet community needs. Volunteers worked with the IQC to construct a Pop-Up Plaza for to experience before moving toward a permanent solution. Read more

The Osage Forest of Peace Board of Directors听unanimously adopted a new campus plan created by students and faculty from 麻豆传媒AV College鈥檚 Landscape Architecture, Architecture, Interior Design, Construction Science, and Urban Design programs. The adopted plan will serve as the Forest鈥檚 official guide for its expansion. Read more .

Regional + City Planning alumna and affiliate published theoretical reflections on the Women of Northeastern Oklahoma City Photovoice Project in the journal Gender, Place and Culture.听The Photovoice project was unveiled in 2016 with the purpose of bringing the neighborhood safety concerns of black women to the attention of local policy makers. The article looks theoretically at Black feminist ideas and makes four key points. Read more .

The Christopher C. 麻豆传媒AV Interior Design program recently partnered with its professional advisory board to host an all-day mentoring event.听The event, held on Thursday, November 7, 2019, brought 19 industry professionals from Dallas, Oklahoma City and Tulsa to the OU campus for a full day spent sharing their experiences with more than 100 students.听Read more .

Three Christopher C. 麻豆传媒AV students spent part of their summer building a playhouse to be sold at the Dallas CASA Parade of Playhouses competition. The competition raises funds for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving abused and neglected children in the area.听Read more

First-year students in Architecture Design I studio were recently hosted by , an 鈥淥klahoma City-based art collective creating immersive experiences that awaken wonder, build community, and make the world better.” Read more .

To help diversify the field of planning, the Division of Regional + City Planning has adopted a plan to recruit underrepresented students. Included in the plan is helping students gain more experience with and knowledge of diversifying cities and neighborhoods.听Read more .

An Architecture alumnus has continued his work with the OU Center for Peace and Development, helping to raise funds and support activities in Uganda and Zambia. He听recommends other students get involved with this program as well because it is truly a life changing experience that builds empathy and valuable life experience. Read more .

Drawing on a survey of more than 9,000 hiring professionals, Design Intelligence ranked the Architecture program among the 鈥淢ost Admired鈥� in 2019. The 麻豆传媒AV program ranks 17th nationally among public institutions and 37th overall. Read more .

Urban Design students kicked off their Great Streets project for Tulsa鈥檚 Maple Ridge Neighborhood. The students are analyzing neighborhood streets and working with residents to calm traffic, improve walkability, and look for placemaking opportunities at parklets and traffic islands. Read more .

Students and faculty traveled to Zambia to use photovoice and focus groups. The course aims to create more effective spaces and identify community desires by helping design and asses the success of various architectural and planning projects. Previously, students in the course have helped design a village and schools. Read more .

The Institute for Quality Communities partnered with the city of Waurika, Oklahoma, to offer planning assistance with the support of the Oklahoma Municipal League. More than 30 GCA students worked with the city to solve problems such as walkability, accessibility, parks, empty buildings, and run-down side streets. Read more .

The Urban Design Studio at OU-Tulsa celebrated 30 years of building leaders and creating communities. Since 1988, the Urban Design Studio has been a flexible learning environment that brings students from different backgrounds, disciplines, and skills together to explore urban issues and develop design solutions. Read more .

Architecture students partnered with the U.S. Department of State as part of a diplomacy lab to analyze findings about tourism development in the U.S. Then, they presented their work to the U.S. Embassy in Greece to assist with the country鈥檚 tourism practices, specifically diversity and sustainability in their tourism industry. Read more .

Faculty and students from across the University traveled to Uganda as a continuation of many collaborations between the OU Center for Peace and Development and local peace-building organizations. They helped the Women’s Advocacy Network and People’s Voices for Peace learn more about their members. Read more .

Interior Design faculty members Natalie Ellis and Mia Kile, along with colleagues at OU-Tulsa, the OU Health Sciences Center, and Johns Hopkins University, were awarded a total of over $23,000 within the last year to pursue research related to 鈥淚nfant-toddler teachers鈥� physical and psychological well-being.”听Read more .

The Southern Plains Transportation Center at OU hosts the Langston University Transportation Academy as part of a program to encourage high school students to take STEM courses. Students experienced 3D visualization of transportation projects using virtual reality technology here at GCA. Read more .

GCA’s Institute for Quality Communities hosted the biannual 2019 Placemaking Conference. More than 600 practitioners, faculty and students from all over Oklahoma, as well as New York, California and Utah attended to hear presentations from experts in economic development, social sculpture, and more. Read more .

Nonprofit Blackspace Oklahoma partnered with GCA, Blackspace NYC, Oklahoma Humanities, and the Women of the NE OKC Photovoice Project to hold a lecture series featuring renowned experts and speakers that focused on exploring community assets, values, identities and ideas within Black neighborhood spaces. Read more .

A Regional and City Planning student explored the intersections of placemaking, culture and lived experiences within barbershop spaces, and conducted a feasibility study for a mobile barbershop in Oklahoma City. Later, she and her fianc茅 opened their own mobile barbershop to help eliminate obstacles for people who struggle to get to such culturally important spaces. Read more .

The Christopher C. 麻豆传媒AV, Institute for Quality Communities and OU-Tulsa Urban Design Studio worked with the City of Muskogee to reimagine the city鈥檚 downtown in the plan, Downtown Muskogee: A Landscape of Hope, which was formally adopted by the city. Read more .

Students from the Urban Design Studio were able to bring a Stickwork sculpture, designed by renowned artist Patrick Dougherty, to Tulsa’s Chapman Green Park as part of a revitalization project initiated by Urban Core Art Project (UCAP). The students have been coordinating placemaking efforts for UCAP. Read more .

The Interior Design division worked with OU Libraries and the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art to create the ArtEDGE program for fifty Norman Public School students. The students crafted designs inspired by an abstract sculpture through sketches, virtual reality and physical models. The models were then displayed at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art鈥檚 Education Gallery. Read more .

Over 40 students from the Haskell and Irene Lemon Division of Construction Science helped build two affordable housing duplexes in Norman, Oklahoma. Students built one of the project鈥檚 duplexes, which was modeled after an identical duplex built by contractors. Both buildings are ADA-compliant and are under the ownership of the Norman Housing Authority. Read more .

The GCA hosted 24 high school students during its annual Architecture Camp. The camp provided students with tours, software knowledge, instruction in design and model building, and experience using laser cutters. The students completed sketching, design and model building challenges and finished the week with a final show for family and friends. Read more .

Regional + City Planning and Landscape Architecture students, along with faculty Meghan Wieters and Tom Woodfin, setup a bike rodeo to teach kids bike safety skills at Open Streets Norman 2018. The event, which was part of the Open Streets Project, closed down most of Webster Avenue to promote walking, biking and healthy living. Read more .

The GCA hosted the Symposium on Women, Peace Building and Community Transformation in Post-Conflict Environments. The conference brought together grassroots advocates striving for justice and quality of life for women in post-conflict northern Uganda. The symposium was part of the launch of OU鈥檚 new Center for Peace and Development. Read more .

The Institute for Quality Communities continued its outreach partnership with the Oklahoma Municipal League for a second year. The partnership enabled students to create conceptual recommendations on built environment topics in a number of Oklahoma communities, including Comanche, Enid, Wynnewood, Wewoka and Chickasha. Read more .

The OU Institute for Quality Communities hosted the third Placemaking Conference, where experts from around the world shared ideas for making better communities with an audience of more than 1,000 civic leaders from 58 counties in Oklahoma and 12 states.

Architecture and Construction Science students earned first place in the 2016 Southwest Region Design-Build Student competition and third place in the National Design-Build Student Competition, for their proposal to deliver design and construction services under one contract with a single point of responsibility.

The College of Architecture and OU Precollegiate Programs cohosted 30 rising ninth and tenth grade students from across Oklahoma for a one-week program of hands-on learning activities relating to architecture, interior design, environmental design, and construction science. Read more .

A team of students led by an assistant professor of Landscape Architecture researched the experiences of children living with autism, mobility limitations, and vision and hearing impairments to understand how to create an inclusive play environment for Oklahoma City鈥檚 MAPS 3 Lower Park. Read more .

Faculty from Regional and City Planning and Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum founded the OU Center for Peace and Development, to build collaborative partnerships with communities affected by conflict, particularly in northern Uganda.

A team of Landscape Architecture students received the Central States American Society of Landscape Architects Communication Award for their digitally designed and fabricated model of the Oklahoma City National Memorial Marathon route, which was also short-listed for a World Landscape Architecture (WLA) Award.

Architecture students collaborated with the Capitoline Museum and the Academic Initiatives Abroad Center in Rome on a research and community service project that measured and documented ancient architectural remains stored on the historic Celian Hill overlooking the Roman Colosseum.

The College of Architecture kicked off a multi-year celebration of its American School legacy, hosting an all-day symposium featuring award-winning architects who focus on contextual, resourceful, and experimental design.

Led by Regional and City Planning and Women鈥檚 and Gender Studies faculty, a team of OU students facilitated a photovoice project with women who were abducted during the Ugandan civil war and forced into marriages with rebels or conscripted as soldiers themselves, helping the women to tell their stories.

Environmental Design students in the OU College of Architecture designed a recreation area around a reservoir in Altus, developed retail strategies in Oklahoma City鈥檚 Deep Deuce neighborhood, and planned restorations of historic train depots in Moore and Wagoner.

Led by an associate professor of Construction Science, students in the College of Architecture made two trips to Houston to help residents clean up in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. Read more .

The OU Institute for Quality Communities worked with the Texas County Health Department, Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust, and City of Guymon to improve public health by making streets that encourage walking and biking.

Interior Design students earned top honors in the Dallas Illuminating Engineering Society Student
Lighting Competition.

A team of College of Architecture students built a playhouse to help raise funds and awareness in support of Court Appointed Special Advocates, who provide children with a safe and healthy environment in permanent homes.

Construction Science and Architecture students took home top honors in the annual TEXO competition in the Commercial and Design-Build categories.

A team of Landscape Architecture students won the national Come Alive Outside Design Challenge for their design of an engaging outdoor learning environment.

The University of Oklahoma College of Architecture hosted the American Society of Interior Designers鈥� National Student Summit, where students from across the country learned to navigate their careers and enhance their understanding of the impact of design on people and their environments.

OU College of Architecture graduate students and the OU Institute for Quality Communities worked with local leaders to develop plans to improve economic vitality and sense of place in Midwest City, Cushing, and Vinita.

The OU Institute for Quality Communities partnered with the Oklahoma Municipal League to host a workshop training 80 city managers and elected officials on making public spaces that celebrate local culture and generate economic development.

An Interior Design student earned a spot in the 鈥淭op 10,鈥� out of more than 800 students from 65 universities, in the Steelcase NEXT competition, which asks students to reimagine the design studio of the future.

Landscape Architecture students were honored by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation and Oklahoma American Society of Landscape Architects for their Korean War Memorial projects. Read more .