VANCOUVER, Wash. — Washington State University Vancouver and architect Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership were recently recognized with an Honor Award for the campus master plan from the Society for College and University Planners and the American Institute of Architects Committee on Architecture for Education.
The award was accepted by Campus Executive Officer and Dean Hal Dengerink and ZGF partner Greg Baldwin at the SCUP-37 International Annual Conference and Expo in San Diego July 16.
“We are very pleased to receive this national recognition for our campus,” said Dengerink. “We are particularly proud to be singled out not only for the beauty of the campus design, but the way we and our partners have involved the community in our growth.”
“The campus has developed a unique position among higher education institutions in the land grant system. On one level, it is a vital part of a regional campus system. On another, it is a place-dependent, local campus that relies on its relationship with the community,” ZGF architect Greg Baldwin stated in the award nomination.
Located on 351-acres in north Clark County, Washington, WSU Vancouver has room for much expansion and growth. For more than a decade, ZGF Partnership has worked with the university on a 100-year master plan to assure that the campus remains beautiful, functional and identifiable with WSU. The plan includes two view corridors that run north and south to Mt. Hood and west and east to Mount St. Helens. Years from now, these mountains will remain visible from the center of campus.
The SCUP/AIA-CAE Excellence in Planning Awards is a joint project of the SCUP and the AIA’s Committee on Architecture for Education. It is a juried competition that recognizes state-of-the-art planning and emphasizes excellence in higher education environments and settings.
The SCUP/AIA-CAE Awards are unique in that entries are judged not only on the quality of the physical environment, but on the comprehensiveness and inclusiveness of the planning process. Significant emphasis is placed on the recognized value of the planning by the institution itself, as demonstrated by its implementation process, state organizers.
More about the awards, as well as a PDF slide show are available at www.scup.org/aiawards.htm.
