The value of a master plan is multi-fold. For instance, it provides an overall picture of where a district is, what problems need to be corrected, and what changes will occur as it moves into the future. "Often, what we find is that people within institutions repair problems, only to find that additional problems are created," says Steve Smith, AIA, principal with Michigan based TMP Associates Architecture. "This ripple effect makes it pretty clear that they should have looked at the larger picture and tried to treat more than a symptom in solving a problem."
Master planning is also an effective way to manage change that occurs naturally as buildings age, educational programs change, technology expands and demographics shift.
Also, a master plan enables a district to respond to, and set priorities among, different levels of facility needs. This is accomplished by listening to the needs of facility users, and the benefit is that facility users understand that they've been heard and their needs met.
Finally, a master plan provides consensus and gives a direction that people buy into. "If there is a rational process behind the goals of the project, then people get on board with it," says Smith.
Master Plan Components
"The master planning process is one that has to be well thought about before you embark on it," says Smith. "When it comes to school facilities, there are a couple of parts to it."
Paul Abramson, president of Stanton Leggett & Associates, an educational facility consulting firm in New York, notes that the master planning process should start with a needs analysis. "In my opinion, it is good to involve as large a public as possible in the process of determining needs, rather than making it a little private group, which tends to happen too often."
The needs analysis includes a demographic study to find out how many students you'll have in the future. It also includes an analysis of existing space in terms of its capacity and more importantly, its ability to support the present educational program and its ability to support the desired educational program. "Once you start saying things like that, it becomes even more important to make sure the community, however defined, agrees," Abramson notes.
Smith agrees that as much objective information as possible be gathered to complete a history and current status of all facilities. "The wider you can cast your net in terms of gathering information, the better the chances you'll get buy in," he explains.
Once the information is gathered, Smith suggests establishing facility benchmarks or standards to which the existing situation can be measured. "Planning has to be looked at holistically," he says, "including the technology, education, building-specific and room-specific, and district-wide operations."
In the midst of all the information gathering, go for the gold in creating a vision. "The vision is the biggest unaddressed area in most school master plans," says Frank Locker, president of DeJong Locker, located in the Boston area. "It's taken for granted, and we often end up with building-oriented master plans, rather than education-oriented master plans."
Locker also emphasizes that funding be considered. What are its sources and amounts, and what strings are attached? "The strings are often a bigger issue than the source or amount," he says. "It's a delicate balance with layers of politics in it."
Finally, understand that the master plan is a living document. "You can't make a master plan and have it cast in stone forever," says Locker. "You've got to make adjustments to it every three years or so."
Architect Vs. Master Planner
Who should you hire to develop your master plan - an architect or a school facility planner? That depends on who you ask. Facility experts will tell you that it's not an architect's job. Yet, plenty of architects understand and have experience with the master planning process.
What is clear, however, is that an architect should be included early in the process. "Our experience has been that, if the documentation that led up to the master plan and the ability to get behind the surface is not well set up, then the learning curve when you get your architect involved can be a little bit bumpy," Smith says gently. "Bringing the architect in early allows him to know more about the underlying culture that meets the master plan assumptions."
"If I had my druthers, and the district is willing to do it," confirms Abramson, "I hope the architect fits in early in the process and hears what people are talking about, because I think that's when he can do his best job." He cites an example where the architect was brought in after the planning and designed a beautiful facility. Unfortunately, it didn't fulfill what had been decided because he had not been involved in the master planning process.
Sage Advice
Two critical pieces of advice are offered to administrators embarking on a master plan. First, study the educational side of the plan, keeping an open mind to a vision and stretching beyond a new version of what you already have. "We too often regard master planning as an exercise that's about buildings," says Locker. "We lose track of how deeply the decisions are about the future of education. I also think we don't have a strong tradition about diving deeply into the nature of education, based on the tradition of making decisions.
"Many traditions have emerged about how to structure schools to support learning - from size to economic integration to the notion of what's the most effective learning - that we're having discussions now that we wouldn't have conceived possible 20 years ago," Locker continues. "Master planning is a time to empower these ideas that are frustrated by inappropriate facilities or where there isn't a district focus on these issues. It's a time to embrace everything about education and give it a future focus."
The second piece of advice is for moving forward once the master plan is done. "Architects try to do what their clients want," points out C. Kenneth Tanner, REFP, engineering professor at the University of Georgia. To that end, work closely with and encourage your architect to complete the visioning process.
"Design in a box should be stopped, and architects know it," Tanner emphasizes. "Make them feel ashamed, so they'll stop. That includes prototype schools."
A master plan is a living document that serves a number of purposes, including providing an overall picture of where a district is and where it's going, allowing an effective way to manage change, and enabling a district to set priorities among facility needs. It's not just a good idea, it's a must-have for every school district.
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