From housing insecurity to increasing health issues, college students are facing an unprecedented array of challenges. Designers are working with campus leaders to engage and support an increasingly diverse and evolving student body.
Higher education often feels like an obstacle course for students, a complex maze that leaves them perpetually stressed and overwhelmed. As they navigate their academic journey, they face a constant barrage of new challenges, ranging from financial pressures to emotional struggles, creating ongoing barriers to their success.
LPA designers continue to work closely with educators to expand campus planning to better support the needs of an ever-changing student demographic. This effort has often been a collaborative, cross-disciplinary effort, involving LPA’s programmers, planners, architects, interior designers, landscape architects, engineers and researchers working together to address the challenges of evolving campus environments.
The focus always starts with the student and the need to do more to support their academic journey. These days, students are likely to be older, racially diverse, financially challenged and facing social and mental issues. At the same time, institutions are seeking new ways to attract students and keep them on campus longer, making the collegiate experience an integral part of their lives.
CSU San Bernardino’s Palm Desert Campus Student Center will provide an array of supportive services for students.
“Campuses are increasingly focusing on supporting the whole student and the broader campus community,” says Steve Flanagan, LPA Director of Higher Education. “Every project presents an opportunity to incorporate collaborative, human-centered spaces that serve as social hubs, encouraging students to stay longer, connect with peers and engage with faculty.”
There is no universal solution or magic formula; each campus is unique, and every project presents distinct, unconventional opportunities. Many institutions are venturing into new territory — community colleges are constructing housing, while universities are enhancing wellness and mental health support.
“We often talk about an ecosystem of offerings, amenities and choices that fulfill the campus needs,” says LPA Design Director Winston Bao. “It’s not a singular solution; it’s using a combination of strategies and approaches that embrace each campus’s uniqueness while addressing its challenges.”
An informed design approach — using research as the foundation to explore the possibilities around each space — has led to designs that address neurodiversity, food insecurity, housing and wellness needs. As institutions look to the future, designers are helping find value in investing in environments that will support the next generation of students.
For Chapman University’s Rinker College Campus, a commercial office park was transformed into a vibrant student center.
Basic Needs Insecurity
Insecurity around food, clothing and health services is growing, and campuses can no longer defer the issue to off-campus services. A recent study found that 22% of students reported low or very low food security, according to a recent report by the Lumina Foundation. Basic needs like clothing and healthcare are constant sources of stress.
Spaces that provide services also require specific planning. Privacy is important. A food pantry needs refrigeration, storage and most importantly, a dignified experience for those seeking assistance. For clothing and supplies, drop-off spaces are needed for donations. Providing services should be integrated into the broader design objective, with flexible spaces that can be adjusted for need.
On Chapman University’s Rinker College Campus, a former commercial office park, designers created a new campus center with a variety of resources, including a food pantry for students in need. Food and other basic needs played a key role in the successful campaign to fund the student union expansion and renovation at California State University, Long Beach, which will include retail-like space to provide basic-needs services.
It’s not a singular solution; it’s using a combination of strategies and approaches that embrace each campus’s uniqueness while addressing its challenges.” – Winston Bao, CID, LEED AP, Design Director, Associate
A feasibility study for a student union on the CSU Long Beach campus explored ways to develop a facility that could serve many roles.
Addressing the Housing Crisis
Depending on the region, many students can’t afford to live near their campus. It’s a crisis situation for many colleges and universities, and they are rapidly exploring options. Community colleges designed for a different era and model are now tackling housing as a pressing need. In many cases, funding and land are available; the question is how to own, operate, maintain and secure these facilities.
A multi-discipline team worked with CSU, Chico to develop an efficient, healthy living environment on an existing site.
LPA designers are working with universities like Chico State University to explore options. For Chico State, the design discussions focused around creating livable, healthy environments while still meeting the larger housing goals. LPA’s Higher Education team is joining with the mixed-use practice, which has been delivering a wide array of supportive and affordable housing projects using different construction and delivery options. Modular units, a blend of retail and healthcare spaces, and strategies for connecting to other campus services are all part of the mix for finding a way to change the equation for student and faculty housing.
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For 31 years, Debra Hammond has focused on improving the daily lives of students on the California State University, Northridge campus. As Executive Director of the University Student Union, she was instrumental in the development of the LPA-designed recreation center and Oasis, a campus center focused on changing health and wellness outcomes. In an interview with Catalyst, Hammond, who recently retired from her CSUN role, discusses the effect of the initiatives on campus life and the keys to developing successful health and wellness programs.
What was successful in terms of developing your priorities?
Asking students what they want and what they need is critically important — then listening to the answers and actually doing something about it. The student voice is absolutely essential in anything that we do.
What changes have you seen in student responses over the years?
When I first came to Northridge, students were more concerned about having fun. They were more focused on social events and activities. That’s evolved over time. Probably one of the biggest changes has been a new focus on wellness and well-being, health and basic needs. As a student, you cannot be a really good student if you’re hungry. You can’t be a great student if you don’t have a safe place to sleep. Those things have changed the game. As an institution, our obligation is to meet students where they are and then help them get to the next level.
Anything surprise you about what has been effective?
One of the things we have always done is to cater to the “majority” of students. Now we’re understanding that there are lots of different identities and communities of students, and we’ve got to figure out how to reach all of them at different points. Some students may only come in because they need food. Other people may come in because they need a study space. Our obligation is to constantly be in a mode of assessment and deep, deep listening and then evaluate that information we receive.
Have you noticed differences in campus life?
In terms of the campus culture, there’s a greater awareness and engagement with wellness resources, which also includes mental health. I’ve also seen more awareness and health consciousness in terms of the food that people desire on campus. You also see students walking around in workout gear and carrying yoga mats. That was a new phenomenon. Students are also on campus longer. It feels like less of a commuter campus and more of a thriving campus, because people stay longer on campus and participate. Participation in these programs/facilities have also produced positive academic outcomes for students.
What’s your advice for developing better facilities to address student needs?
Make sure that students are front and center of the process. We don’t start anything without talking to them, asking them what they want, what’s important to them and what makes them feel valued. They have to be part of the decision-making process. We need to respect their wishes and figure out how we can address their needs. Our job is to get to “yes.” We do that by making students the focus and partners in the process.
A Healthier, Stronger Student
Campuses are playing an increasingly active role in supporting the mental and physical health of students, faculty and staff. Every campus is looking for spaces that give occupants the opportunity to de-stress, recharge and reconnect. Use of natural and organic materials and links to outdoor environments, fresh air and mental health resources are the threads that bind together wellness, neurodiversity and the sense of belonging. Biophilic design with connections to nature provide areas of comfort and respite, even in busy places.
“These are places that don’t just connect to nature, they’re intentional gathering spaces to build community and that sense of belonging,” Bao says.
The California State University, Northridge’s Oasis wellness center was a strategic renovation designed to have a meaningful impact related to stress and sleep difficulties. The space includes a variety of curated microclimates, indoors and outdoors, specifically designed for students to experience mindfulness and find time in their busy day for themselves.
Los Medanos College’s new student union is linked to fitness, physical education and wellness opportunities.
A Sense of Belonging
More than ever, students need to see campuses as a safe place, where they feel connected and part of a community. That could come in many forms — a cultural link, a home for veterans, a secluded spot to study or meet a friend. “These are the places where you to start to build a community with your student peers, develop friendships and relationships,” says LPA Design Director Ozzie Tapia.
A sense of belonging means spaces that understand all types of diversity. It’s often about scale, providing a variety of spaces big and small to fulfill different needs. Everybody can find their own special place. Adaptable environments create opportunities to engage or disengage, stimulating all the senses. It’s all about choice, empowering students to find and create the right space for them, when they need it.
The expansion of the California State University, San Bernardino student union centered on giving students a new home on campus, a place they can call their own. A bowling alley, food court and a pub help create a vibrant center for social life on campus, while also providing spaces for people looking to develop their own community, large or small. Clubs, identity and cultural spaces were purposely elevated to the top floor, making the shared space a prime destination for the entire campus. “Students can find the place where they feel represented,” Tapia says. “You’re addressing the spectrum of student needs.”
Planning for Neurodiversity
Designing spaces to support a neurodiverse student body is one of the biggest challenges facing education planning. It is important to create spaces that celebrate and support the full spectrum of human brain diversity.
At this year’s Community College Facility Coalition annual conference, LPA Design Director Winston Bao and Research Manager Kimari Phillips facilitated a workshop on planning campuses that recognize people experience built and natural environments in very different ways. Along with Chaffey College’s Dr. Michael McClellan, the Interim Associate Superintendent of Instruction and Institutional Effectiveness, and Troy Ament, Chaffey’s Associate Superintendent, Administrative Services and Emergency Operations, the panel focused on strategies to help campuses incorporate an understanding of neurodiversity in the design process.
Practicing Neuro-Inclusive Design
Start with research
Engage collaboratively
Set goals and identify anticipated challenges
Incorporate neuroinclusive and mind-friendly design strategies
Promoting Equity and Universal Design
Welcoming and accessible
Visible and easy-to-understand wayfinding
Accommodations for individual differences and disabilities
Reduce anxiety
A sense of comfort and safety
A sense of belonging
Ownership and autonomy
Transcend traditional edges
Neurodiversity vs. Neurodivergence
Related but distinct concepts fundamental to inclusive design:
Neurodiversity: recognizes natural variation in how all human brains function—design for a range rather than a mythical “average.”
Two people can have a different sensory experience in the same space.
Neurodivergence: an individual’s brain functions diverge from the societal standard of “typical” — understand specific cognitive and sensory needs a design must address.
At least 20% of global population; includes dyslexia, ADHD, autism and individuals with accentuated sensory experiences.
