Pictured above: Northern Arizona University
The concept of placemaking entered urban planning during the mid-20th century. These days, planners and developers are relying on placemaking strategies to help improve the quality of life and foster a sense of community.
Placemaking is also making its way onto college and university campuses. David McCullough, Principal at McCullough Landscape Architects, recently shared his views on the role of higher education exterior planning and design in issues such as student well-being and enrollment.
Q. How does higher educational campus placemaking differ from its urban counterpart?
A. Typical placemaking strategies in both urban and university settings might include art placement, social gathering areas and opportunities, retail and mixed-use offerings, multi-modal circulation intersections and non-invasive safety and security efforts. However, university placemaking is a little different because students are both residents and transient users. For that short but critical time in their lives, they seek identity, safety and belonging beyond just learning. Campus placemaking influences how a student imagines daily life there. In an increasingly competitive enrollment environment, these real-life experiences can be just as influential as academics in shaping students’ university selection.
Q. What factors have led to an increase in campus placemaking planning?
A. Social isolation, accelerated by technology and then intensified by COVID, heightened the human desire to connect with others and find belonging in meaningful ways. Placemaking became a differentiator because it directly shapes students’ daily experiences, offering social interaction, vibrancy of place, and a general buzz of energy that draws people together. It helps students feel rooted in their campus. When students don’t find that connection and alignment, they are more willing to reassess their choice. With national data showing that over one-third of college students transfer at least once during their academic careers, this raises important questions for universities about how critical a sense of belonging is to enrollment retention.
Q. How does a sense of place impact student recruitment and retention?
A. Placemaking makes a place feel special, but a key element here for success is that it cannot feel exclusive. To strike the right balance, it needs to feel inclusive, yet authentic. A first-time visitor, as well as a resident, needs to feel a sense of belonging, that the place is for them and they are part of it. We’ve seen campuses where students gravitate to certain shared spaces from their first visit, begin to imagine themselves there, and then build routines around them. This helps increase time spent on campus, a sense of ownership, and the likelihood of staying.
Q. How should colleges and universities develop and execute placemaking strategies?
A. Placemaking absolutely needs to originate from uniqueness. If the thought process doesn’t start here, success will be difficult, if not unattainable. My advice would be to start with what’s there today, rather than reinventing the wheel. Building on this can be the biggest driver of how successful universities treat surrounding communities as an asset that threads through their campus. Also, a strong relationship between institutions and their surrounding communities can be mutually beneficial. A vibrant campus brings economic activity into the neighborhood, while shared public spaces, amenities, retail partnerships and community programming strengthen student life and the local economy.
Q. What are some mistakes to avoid?
A. As I mentioned earlier, starting from scratch without grounding a project in the existing city and community won’t work out well. Another frequent misstep is treating placemaking as an exercise, rather than focusing on how spaces are actually used day to day. There is a recipe for placemaking, and success depends on partnering with teams committed to local context and to understanding what truly works and what doesn’t. Administrators also need to recognize that placemaking is a long-term strategy that requires commitment.
Q. How do you see placemaking evolving on college and university campuses?
A. Over the next ten years, campuses will increasingly start to look like urban, mixed-use communities or places where people live, work, play and engage. Rather than feeling like gated or isolated environments, campuses will blend more into the fabric of the communities in which they sit. We’ll see physical and social edges breaking down between campuses and cities. These everyday spaces will be intentionally woven together, creating a walkable environment where most human needs are met. This, in turn, will reduce reliance on the automobile while giving students greater independence and real-world experience to better prepare them for life after graduation.
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