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Flexible furnishings allow
faculty to adapt workspaces
to suit their changing needs.
Students can choose from a variety of
settings—indoor and out—where they
can focus or work in groups.
Learning Space Profle
Today, some of the most efective universities
are ofering people an unprecedented variety
of spaces for studying, learning, and teaching.
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is one such
place. From outdoor areas to inspiring design
studios to technology-enhanced labs, students
and faculty can choose among settings that are
thoughtfully outftted with everything they need
to work together, share content, or simply relax
and have fun.
Within these spaces, people can choose the
furnishings and tools that best support their needs
in the moment and adapt them as learning and
teaching progress. Two of the best examples of this
human-centered approach to learning space design
are the Media Studios at the College Library in the
Helen C. White Hall.
“The Media Studios started as a project between
our college, the undergraduate library, and a group
of faculty who were trying to do some innovative
teaching with media—both studying media as well
as the role of media in individual and collaborative
projects,” said Jon McKenzie, Professor of English
and the Director of DesignLab at the University
of Wisconsin–Madison.
The university partnered with Herman Miller through
LSRP and outftted the Media Studios with mobile
furnishings to empower students and faculty with the
ability to confgure the studio to suit the task at hand.
The new Media Studios have large desktop
displays for sharing work, as well as projectors
and whiteboards for presentations. “Being able
to bring the tools and the assignments together
in a really concerted way—that’s the power of the
studio,” said McKenzie.
People are eager to use the Media Studios, which can
be easily adapted to accommodate a broad range
of courses—from Computer Science and Game Design
to African-American Studies and Creative Writing.
In both Media Studios, mobile tables with
large monitors line the perimeter, ofering
small groups of students a place to share
content and develop projects.
The Media Studios are just two of many
spaces in the library that ofer students
the opportunity to work together in a
comfortable, supportive setting outftted
with the tools they need to do their best.
