Some school districts are innovating school designs intended to frustrate mass murder and protect students against shooters. New layouts include curving hallways and zigzagging corridors that reduce the distance bullets can fly while giving students a chance to escape a rampage. Wingwalls and impact-resistant glass provide extra security.
Unfortunately, due to the segregation of our public school system into rich and poor districts, and the redlining that has impoverished so many black school districts, most schools cannot afford to build from scratch.
Poor school districts however recently had the opportunity to think about less expensive ways to change the culture of school hallways, long known to foster bullying and negativity.
An Association of Imaginary Schools contest encouraged students and teachers alike to create vision boards for makeovers for their school hallways. The winner of the contest received a subsidized renovation based on the winning design.
American public schools serve as a pipeline to industrial jobs and incarceration, and their architecture reflects that. School hallways from the 1950’s onward have relied heavily on the factory and prison models, and were often designed by the same people.
The Association contest challenged school communities to re-think their corridors as places of connection and beauty. The winner was the middle school at Public School Zero, and the design featured soft fluffy furniture, soothing pink and cream colors, and a flower motif.
One thing that the Association judges noticed, was that not a single amateur entry included the dreary, hectoring motivational quotes on large wall decals or strips of deadening fluorescent light that are the go-to features of professional school designs.
Perhaps school architects need to learn to THINK BIGGER! BE THE BEST THAT THEY CAN BE! IMAGINE A BETTER WORLD!
Also Read: Racist Design on College Campuses