press release

VMDO Addresses North Carolina Educators at NCASCD Conference

Presentation Will Focus on Innovations at the Intersection of Multiple Disciplines

Feb. 8, 2006 – VMDO Architects' Bob Moje and Bill Bradley will present at the North Carolina Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development's (NCASCD) Annual Conference in Pinehurst, N.C. on Thursday, February 9, 2006. The conference’s theme is “Changing Schools to Fit the Student: New Visions For Success.” Moje, VMDO Principal, and Bradley, the firm's educational planner, will address state educators on the subject of building bridges across multiple disciplines to foster new innovations in education and school design.

The presentation entitled "Innovation: Exploring the Intersection Between Education and Architecture," will use the firm's successful design of Manassas Park High School in Manassas Park, V.A. as an example of how innovative school design can enhance teaching and learning.

The “rags to riches” story of a revitalized Manassas Park began when its new high school was built. As recently as eight years ago, property values were down, test scores were well below state averages, athletics were winless, and community morale was down. Led by a movement within its school system, the community experienced a 180-degree turnaround – property values are up, test scores rank among the top in the state, and the high school football and wrestling teams are champions. At the heart of this turnaround is an exploration of intersections, in particular, the intersection between education and architecture. Manassas Park replaced its most significant school buildings, and in doing so, intentionally married the design to the curriculum to enhance teaching and learning in new and unique ways.

Using the Manassas Park story as a basis for discussion, Moje and Bradley’s presentation will explore ways to more readily recognize intersections between education and other, seemingly unrelated, fields so that educators can develop new models for teaching and learning. Fran Johansson’s book The Medici Effect, which says that the best opportunity for innovation lies at the intersection of two or more fields, provides the framework for discussion.

For more information about the NC-ASCD, visit northcarolina.ascd.org.

For more information about VMDO Architects, please contact William Bishop at 434-296-5684 or bishop@vmdo.com or visit www.vmdo.com.

VMDO Architects was founded in 1976 and is the 2003 recipient of the T. David Fitz-Gibbon Virginia Architecture Award, the most prestigious honor given by the Virginia Society of American Institute of Architects.