University as Civic Partner
February 14–16, 2008
In spring 2008, in partnership with the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Phoenix Urban Research Lab will sponsor a conference on the theme of “University as Civic Partner.” In choosing this topic, we acknowledge an important and fairly recent shift in academia: the shift from conceptualizing the university as a citadel, a place apart, to viewing the university as embedded in the life of its city, its community.
University campuses nationwide provide ample evidence of this shift, in new and renovated buildings and landscapes that seek to connect with surrounding neighborhoods, to interact with their cities. At ASU, the past two years have seen a major demonstration of the commitment to urban/academic integration: the planning and construction of the ASU Downtown Campus, a 20-acre new campus in central Phoenix that will ultimately serve 15,000 students. In August 2006, the first phase opened: major facilities include University Center, a former utility headquarters renovated to house the College of Public Programs; Residential Commons, a former Ramada Inn renovated to provide temporary student housing; and the College of Nursing and Healthcare Innovation, located in a former state office building. Planning and design is now proceeding on a second phase, which will comprise a new building for the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, a new mid-rise dormitory, a campus center located in a renovated Spanish-colonial U.S. Post Office, and large park/urban plaza for both campus and city.
Intended for a diverse audience—including university heads and administrators, city officials and planners, professional designers, municipal and institutional leaders, civic activists, design faculty and students, and real estate developers—the conference will explore how university expansion can be conceived not merely as a process of acquiring land and developing new facilities, but more broadly as an opportunity to participate in city making, to nurture civic culture.
Please check back for updated information and conference registration.
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