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Meaningful Change Starts With What You Already Have

As an interior designer specializing in educational facilities, I have seen firsthand how urgently schools are working to address the youth mental health crisis. Through relatively modest interventions, schools can make existing spaces feel calmer, more comfortable and more responsive to the people using them. The goal is not to create a perfect, high-end “wellness room” in every building, but rather to thoughtfully examine the space and resources already available and use them with greater intention.

Jordan Schuster, NCIDQ, Assoc. IIDA, SHP

Designing What MattersWhy measuring design impact should begin before a building opens

What if we could know whether a school works as intended — not just as a building, but for the students and educators who experience it every day? At Wilder-Waite Grade School, we're beginning to ask that question before the new school even opens. Through teacher and user-group questionnaires, surveys and existing school information, we're documenting today's experience — how educators teach, how students use space, what conditions help or hinder learning, and what the school community hopes to preserve or change.

Mark Beebe, AIA, RID, NCARB, LEED AP, ECLPS, RATIO Design

A4LE and EDmarket Move Forward Together

After nearly two years of planning, conversations, and an extraordinary amount of work, I’m pleased to share a milestone: A4LE and EDmarket have completed the legal and operational steps to merge into a single association. We are now A4LE + EDmarket — one association, one staff team, and one membership community. As we prepare for our full public launch in early January 2027, we are bringing our programs, communications, and member experiences together around a shared purpose: serving the people who shape learning environments.

John K. Ramsey, A4LE + EDmarket

When the Building Becomes Part of the Instruction

The most innovative school is not necessarily the one with the most unusual furniture or dramatic spaces. It is the one where design decisions become almost invisible because the environment simply works. By anticipating that distinction, the building was designed to provide flexibility, but it does so in a way that supports rather than complicates the work of teachers.

Dr. Justin Zajic, Chamberlain School District

Decluttered by DesignHow storage, sensory support, and neuroinclusive planning create a space to learn

When we hear the word “clutter,” we often think about cleaning up or housekeeping. But in a classroom, clutter is about much more than keeping things neat. What students see, hear, move around, find, and put away throughout the day can affect their focus, comfort, independence, and ability to learn. A clutter-free classroom does not need to feel empty or sterile. It should feel organized, predictable, welcoming, and ready for learning.

Patricia Cadigan, M. Ed., ALEP, Artcobell

edgallery Innovations

Looking for a new product for your next building or renovation project? Find the latest innovations in the edgallery. See what’s new for the coming school year before you head to EDspaces and LearningSCAPES by visiting the edgallery website and start browsing product categories, researching top innovations, and connecting with trusted suppliers in just a few clicks. Want to see your product or project featured?

CTE: Finding Their Space to Find Their Place Five Ways Learning Environments Strengthen Career and Technical Education Programs

Thanks to decades of underinvestment, many people view CTE spaces — particularly those involving the skilled trades — as outdated and disconnected. It’s a place over there where those students go. When technical labs and shops are neglected, many students do not see them. Those who do get a glimpse are not impressed. Often, the setting is dirty and disorganized. Students conclude that their school views CTE careers as inferior.

Doug Ogurek, LEED AP BD+C, Legat Architects | Kelsey Jordan, AIA, ALEP, NCARB, WELL AP, Fitwel, Legat Architects | Robin Randall, FAIA, ALEP, LEED AP BD+D, Legat Architects

What School Buyers Should Ask Before Choosing Cafeteria Tables

Most districts replace cafeteria tables once every ten to fifteen years. The person running the purchase has probably never run one before and will not run another for a decade. The decision goes through a committee, gets reviewed by the business office, and is then lived with every day by food service and custodial staff who were not in the room when it was made. Consider these questions worth asking before the first vendor call, and what a useful answer sounds like....

Brent Kenyon, Palmer Hamilton

AI + Learning + Space: New Spatial Taxonomies for Learning Ecosystems (Part 2)

A new age demands that we think anew, that we evolve methods, processes, and ecosystems. Learning environments are intricately tied to those experiences for students. As AI becomes a larger force in these learning ecosystems, we should recognize the immense power that comes with new perspectives facilitated with this new foundational technology.

Tomas Jimenez-Eliaeson, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C, CDT, Little

A4LE + EDmarket Celebrate 2026 NexGen Rising Stars

A4LE + EDmarket are thrilled to announce the 2026 NexGen Rising Stars — a dynamic group of emerging leaders who are transforming the education industry. Each year, they recognize professionals 40 and under whose innovation, leadership, and dedication to student success are shaping the future of learning. This year’s honorees represent the very best of what’s next in education.

Learning without Limits: Designing K–12 Environments That Support Every Learner

Choose with Confidence | Move with Purpose | Thrive with Possibilities Education is evolving, and the environments that support learning must evolve with it. Today’s students are expected to collaborate, think critically, adapt quickly, and engage in increasingly personalized learning experiences. At the same time, educators are balancing multiple instructional modes, rising classroom complexity, and […]

Taylor Morgan, The HON Company

Designing Flexible Libraries and Media Centers for the Future of Learning

The modern learning commons/media center is much more than a place to store books. It is a dynamic learning environment where students research, collaborate, create, reflect, and connect ideas. It becomes the school’s “idea engine.” Designing these spaces with flexibility in mind allows them to support the full range of learning experiences happening within an educational institution. Linked spaces, purposeful activity zones, adaptable furnishings and finishes, and strong indoor-outdoor connections can work together to create environments that are ready to evolve.

Scott Smith, Virco

Supporting K-12 Literacy Through Natural Learning Environments

Bringing natural environments into K-12 literacy instruction has research behind it: better student well-being, stronger engagement, improved reading comprehension. Collaboration between educators and designers is what turns that research into natural learning environments that learners actually want to spend time in. None of this replaces good teaching. It just gives good teaching somewhere better to happen. Curriculum tells students what to learn. The physical environment tells them how far they can take it. Get both right, and literacy stops being something that happens despite the space and starts being something the space makes room for.

Kelly Rosensweet, Natural Pod

Measuring What Matters in School DesignHow Interface and CAUSE are Bringing Data Driven Insights to K-12 Design

By providing easy-to-implement measurement tools, the Coalition for the Advanced Understanding of School Environments (CAUSE) enables schools to gather student- and teacher-centered feedback and adjust accordingly. With better data, schools can identify which environmental factors support students and which create barriers. Designers can then refine their approaches based on real-world outcomes rather than assumptions, and districts can allocate resources more effectively, with greater confidence that investments will lead to measurable improvements.

Interface

Virtual Classrooms, Real Results: Validating Pedagogy and Accessibility Through 3D Visualization

The evolution of K-12 school design demands tools that are as sophisticated as our educational aspirations. Creating learning environments that champion active pedagogy while upholding strict ADA accessibility standards requires moving beyond static 2D assumptions. By embracing high-fidelity 3D visualization, architects, manufacturers, and school leaders can merge compliance with creativity ensuring that every virtual classroom translates into real, inclusive results for every student.

Riverstone