Graham Baumann shares how sustainable school buildings enhance learning, reduce costs, and promote wellness through smart design.

1 00:00:00,780 --> 00:00:03,280 [Music] 2 00:00:03,280 --> 00:00:04,880 I want to welcome our audience to this 3 00:00:04,880 --> 00:00:07,200 learn podcast. It is in these podcasts 4 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:08,800 that learn wants you to meet experts 5 00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:10,400 that can help you in your work as school 6 00:00:10,400 --> 00:00:12,320 leaders or perhaps partners in the 7 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:14,639 education landscape. The topic for this 8 00:00:14,639 --> 00:00:16,480 podcast is building structures. And our 9 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:19,119 guest is Graham Bowman, partner with 10 00:00:19,119 --> 00:00:21,520 architects. On the learn website, you 11 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:23,600 will find on the research page under the 12 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:26,160 COE sustainability and the element of 13 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:28,160 building structures research in this 14 00:00:28,160 --> 00:00:29,439 area being discussed along with 15 00:00:29,439 --> 00:00:32,160 potential resources to access. Graham, I 16 00:00:32,160 --> 00:00:33,360 want to welcome you to the learn 17 00:00:33,360 --> 00:00:35,440 podcast. It's good to have you here to 18 00:00:35,440 --> 00:00:36,800 speak with us about this important 19 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:39,120 topic. Now, I know you have an extensive 20 00:00:39,120 --> 00:00:40,719 research and work background in the area 21 00:00:40,719 --> 00:00:42,559 building structures. Would you please 22 00:00:42,559 --> 00:00:43,920 share with the audience some of that 23 00:00:43,920 --> 00:00:46,160 background and experience? I appreciate 24 00:00:46,160 --> 00:00:48,559 it, Dr. V and thanks for having me to be 25 00:00:48,559 --> 00:00:50,559 able to speak to what I can help out 26 00:00:50,559 --> 00:00:53,039 with. I'm a partner and principal at 27 00:00:53,039 --> 00:00:55,039 Architects. I've been working here since 28 00:00:55,039 --> 00:00:56,559 2009. 29 00:00:56,559 --> 00:00:58,079 I've had the opportunity to work with 30 00:00:58,079 --> 00:01:00,320 Dr. Rewindling specifically in Mosquistd 31 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:02,160 in the past. We have some history 32 00:01:02,160 --> 00:01:04,799 together. Um I work with uh clients in 33 00:01:04,799 --> 00:01:06,880 the Dallas Fort Worth area as well as 34 00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:09,520 clients around Tulsa and Oklahoma. I'm 35 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:11,840 also the director of operations, which 36 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:14,560 allows me to oversee some of the uh 37 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:16,560 quality assurance and quality control of 38 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:19,439 our our product, our contract documents 39 00:01:19,439 --> 00:01:21,119 that we issue to our clients and 40 00:01:21,119 --> 00:01:23,439 contractors. It puts me at the forefront 41 00:01:23,439 --> 00:01:25,600 of code research, sustainability 42 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:27,520 initiatives, staff training, 43 00:01:27,520 --> 00:01:29,280 construction administration, and cost 44 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:31,119 research. I'm just happy to be here. 45 00:01:31,119 --> 00:01:32,960 Thanks for having me. Now, Graham, how 46 00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:34,960 long have you been doing this work? I've 47 00:01:34,960 --> 00:01:38,159 been working uh with since 2009 uh 48 00:01:38,159 --> 00:01:40,400 directly after graduating from Texas 49 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,560 Tech University with my master's degree. 50 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:44,320 Okay. So quite a bit of experience in 51 00:01:44,320 --> 00:01:46,320 this and you put together a number of 52 00:01:46,320 --> 00:01:48,240 buildings over your time and seen those 53 00:01:48,240 --> 00:01:50,320 that can really sustain over time 54 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:51,439 against those who are going to be caught 55 00:01:51,439 --> 00:01:53,520 in time. I'm certain. And so we'll talk 56 00:01:53,520 --> 00:01:56,240 about that today. And now um what we 57 00:01:56,240 --> 00:01:58,399 want to do is really kind of dig into 58 00:01:58,399 --> 00:02:00,240 maybe the research but especially your 59 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,320 work experience around this. So would 60 00:02:02,320 --> 00:02:03,840 you share with the audience if you will 61 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:06,960 key insights or information about um 62 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:08,560 what a sustainable building would look 63 00:02:08,560 --> 00:02:09,840 like and what are the things you think 64 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:12,160 about as you look down the the road in 65 00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:14,400 the future of construction? Well, 66 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:16,959 touching on the concept of research, 67 00:02:16,959 --> 00:02:18,879 we've we've kind of discovered that 68 00:02:18,879 --> 00:02:20,720 there's two types of research. There's 69 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:22,720 primary research which is uh 70 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:24,879 self-conducted where you're going to go 71 00:02:24,879 --> 00:02:27,280 um further a particular study study or 72 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:30,000 topic um to figure out um what what the 73 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:31,440 needs are. And then there's secondary 74 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:33,120 research which is tapping into the 75 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:35,200 research that's already been conducted. 76 00:02:35,200 --> 00:02:38,160 Uh I spend a lot of my time um 77 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:40,720 formulating and consolidating a lot of 78 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:42,640 this secondary research especially on 79 00:02:42,640 --> 00:02:44,879 sustainability that I can gather and 80 00:02:44,879 --> 00:02:47,200 then um forward that over or meet with 81 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:49,280 school districts to try to uh convey 82 00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:52,000 that in bite-size and easy to understand 83 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,080 uh topics on how it is either going to 84 00:02:54,080 --> 00:02:56,000 benefit the school district or at least 85 00:02:56,000 --> 00:02:58,480 the project at hand. And that comes in 86 00:02:58,480 --> 00:03:01,200 the form of uh is it cost effective 87 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:04,159 either initial cost or long-term life 88 00:03:04,159 --> 00:03:07,440 cycle cost um the replacement cost uh 89 00:03:07,440 --> 00:03:09,120 how it's going to benefit both the 90 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:10,720 facility the environment and the 91 00:03:10,720 --> 00:03:14,319 occupants. Um I know there's there's 92 00:03:14,319 --> 00:03:15,840 quite a bit of understanding when it 93 00:03:15,840 --> 00:03:17,840 comes to the word sustainability. Some 94 00:03:17,840 --> 00:03:19,760 people shrink when they hear it. They 95 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:21,440 get nervous because it is an 96 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:23,360 all-inclusive term. It's meant many 97 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:25,440 different things over the years. even 98 00:03:25,440 --> 00:03:27,200 industry to industry it means something 99 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:29,040 different. So if you talk sustainable 100 00:03:29,040 --> 00:03:30,720 growth in a company it means something 101 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:32,319 different than when you're talking about 102 00:03:32,319 --> 00:03:34,959 a sustainable facility. So just the the 103 00:03:34,959 --> 00:03:38,720 varied kind of definition of the word um 104 00:03:38,720 --> 00:03:41,440 tends to scare quite a few people. But 105 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:43,680 it's the more you kind of work through 106 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:45,440 it and talk through it and put it into 107 00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:47,040 bite-size understanding. I think 108 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:48,959 everyone can understand that 109 00:03:48,959 --> 00:03:51,920 sustainability initiatives are good. You 110 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:54,879 just need to be able to convince and uh 111 00:03:54,879 --> 00:03:56,560 convey that the research is out there 112 00:03:56,560 --> 00:03:59,040 that can prove that it is beneficial for 113 00:03:59,040 --> 00:04:01,519 your students. It'll improve test scores 114 00:04:01,519 --> 00:04:03,599 if you build an environment in a certain 115 00:04:03,599 --> 00:04:05,599 way that includes daylighting and indoor 116 00:04:05,599 --> 00:04:08,319 air quality and all of those, you know, 117 00:04:08,319 --> 00:04:10,080 sustainable attributes that you would 118 00:04:10,080 --> 00:04:12,159 find in construction. And then also, how 119 00:04:12,159 --> 00:04:14,080 does that affect the cost of a project? 120 00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:16,239 Because when you're a public school 121 00:04:16,239 --> 00:04:18,880 working with public funds, you have to 122 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:21,600 be careful that you're not overspending 123 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:23,919 your budget on one project and not able 124 00:04:23,919 --> 00:04:26,000 to provide that next school down later 125 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:28,000 in the school bump, right? And that that 126 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:30,000 becomes a a key component of the 127 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:32,240 calculus, if you will, as you look down 128 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:34,160 the how do I build the building I want 129 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:36,720 versus how much money do I have? and and 130 00:04:36,720 --> 00:04:38,960 so and and you really do rely on those 131 00:04:38,960 --> 00:04:41,360 voters and and your board to be able to 132 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:43,280 support whatever sustainable initiatives 133 00:04:43,280 --> 00:04:46,000 you're looking at. as you as you think 134 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:47,759 about that as as we talk about that 135 00:04:47,759 --> 00:04:50,000 today, what what are some of those 136 00:04:50,000 --> 00:04:52,240 potential predictive positive outcomes 137 00:04:52,240 --> 00:04:54,320 that can come out of a I would say 138 00:04:54,320 --> 00:04:56,479 suggest what you guys call shared or a 139 00:04:56,479 --> 00:04:58,960 conversation with your public um around 140 00:04:58,960 --> 00:05:01,680 these issues of sustainability um as uh 141 00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:03,120 superintendents investigate how to move 142 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:05,840 forward with construction projects. 143 00:05:05,840 --> 00:05:08,479 Well, the the the easiest the easiest 144 00:05:08,479 --> 00:05:11,039 attribute to grasp um as a positive 145 00:05:11,039 --> 00:05:13,840 outcome would be the comfort of of your 146 00:05:13,840 --> 00:05:15,280 occupants. the students and the 147 00:05:15,280 --> 00:05:17,360 teachers. Uh, are they comfortable in a 148 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:20,160 space because that equates to how well 149 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:21,759 they're going to learn? That that's the 150 00:05:21,759 --> 00:05:24,320 easiest positive outcome that you you 151 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:26,320 could probably grasp on to from a school 152 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:28,160 district standpoint. There's obvious 153 00:05:28,160 --> 00:05:30,400 environmental positives to sustainable 154 00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:34,000 design. uh when it comes to recycling, 155 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:37,280 reusing products, you know, limiting raw 156 00:05:37,280 --> 00:05:40,160 material use, you know, all all of all 157 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,639 of the sustainable environmental impacts 158 00:05:42,639 --> 00:05:44,479 that you can have on a facility, but the 159 00:05:44,479 --> 00:05:47,600 easiest easiest positive outcome is how 160 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:50,320 it relates to test scores and how much 161 00:05:50,320 --> 00:05:52,720 learning is uh being picked up in the 162 00:05:52,720 --> 00:05:54,400 classroom. So, those are those are the 163 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:57,360 things I would focus on on a very very 164 00:05:57,360 --> 00:06:00,080 first term. and also uh durability and 165 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:02,000 functionality towards the future. We're 166 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:04,160 we're always asked to provide a flexible 167 00:06:04,160 --> 00:06:07,280 environment for construction. It's it's 168 00:06:07,280 --> 00:06:09,759 not anything that's a new request in 169 00:06:09,759 --> 00:06:11,759 architecture. I think it's it's kind of 170 00:06:11,759 --> 00:06:13,360 always been requested to be that way, 171 00:06:13,360 --> 00:06:15,520 but the definition and how you can 172 00:06:15,520 --> 00:06:17,840 achieve that is constantly evolving. And 173 00:06:17,840 --> 00:06:19,280 that's what we need to keep keep 174 00:06:19,280 --> 00:06:21,039 researching and keep finding the current 175 00:06:21,039 --> 00:06:23,039 research that will back up those 176 00:06:23,039 --> 00:06:25,680 concepts because I can tell you test 177 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:27,280 scores will be better. But if you don't 178 00:06:27,280 --> 00:06:29,840 see the research that that shows that, 179 00:06:29,840 --> 00:06:31,520 right, it's going to be hard for me to 180 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:33,680 back it up. It's interesting, Graham, 181 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:35,440 you you point that out because we've had 182 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:38,240 a few podcasts around lighting. We're 183 00:06:38,240 --> 00:06:40,319 going to have one here shortly around uh 184 00:06:40,319 --> 00:06:42,720 the aesthetics of a building. Um we've 185 00:06:42,720 --> 00:06:44,800 had some on air quality and and in each 186 00:06:44,800 --> 00:06:47,840 case they talk about that what you just 187 00:06:47,840 --> 00:06:50,000 mentioned that uh improved performance 188 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:52,319 on the part of students and even 189 00:06:52,319 --> 00:06:54,240 improved engagement and improved 190 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:56,639 attendance. So I think you you point out 191 00:06:56,639 --> 00:06:58,240 something really valuable as you pay 192 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:00,080 attention to that research that learn is 193 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:02,720 putting out that connects to building 194 00:07:02,720 --> 00:07:05,440 sustainability. Um it could be of great 195 00:07:05,440 --> 00:07:07,360 value to you as you're uh trying to 196 00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:09,360 communicate to your public. Is there 197 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:11,520 anything you you know in terms of cost 198 00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:14,319 as well in your experience? Are there 199 00:07:14,319 --> 00:07:16,800 ways to build a more sustainable 200 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:19,759 building to meet your your um your uh 201 00:07:19,759 --> 00:07:21,840 student needs if you will um while 202 00:07:21,840 --> 00:07:23,440 keeping cost down? Is that something 203 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:25,039 that you guys have explored a lot 204 00:07:25,039 --> 00:07:26,400 lately? Because I know the cost of 205 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:28,479 buildings has gone up dramatically. 206 00:07:28,479 --> 00:07:30,080 Well, there's there's several ways to do 207 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:31,520 that. I mean, in the area of 208 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:33,120 sustainability, there's quite a bit of 209 00:07:33,120 --> 00:07:36,080 focus on your energy use. How how can we 210 00:07:36,080 --> 00:07:38,560 conserve that? How can we reduce waste, 211 00:07:38,560 --> 00:07:40,800 improve indoor air quality, reduce water 212 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:43,360 consumption and reduce the amount of 213 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:46,160 building materials or use more healthy 214 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:48,800 build building materials. Um, but there 215 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:50,880 should be an equal amount of focus on 216 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:53,360 sustainable decisions that leadership 217 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:55,520 can make before a project even gets off 218 00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:57,599 the ground. Those initial meetings 219 00:07:57,599 --> 00:07:59,360 getting getting the design team 220 00:07:59,360 --> 00:08:02,319 integrated in what the need is. Um, I'm 221 00:08:02,319 --> 00:08:03,599 going to use an example, and you're 222 00:08:03,599 --> 00:08:05,199 fairly familiar with it when we talk 223 00:08:05,199 --> 00:08:07,440 about Vanguard High School. You made the 224 00:08:07,440 --> 00:08:08,879 initial decision to build a 225 00:08:08,879 --> 00:08:10,960 state-of-the-art reduced footprint high 226 00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:12,879 school for your sixth high school 227 00:08:12,879 --> 00:08:15,759 instead of um proceeding with a 228 00:08:15,759 --> 00:08:17,280 traditional sixth high school, which 229 00:08:17,280 --> 00:08:19,360 would have been a lot more footprint, a 230 00:08:19,360 --> 00:08:22,400 lot more initial cost and quite a bit 231 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:24,319 more ongoing and maintenance and 232 00:08:24,319 --> 00:08:26,879 operation cost for the the district for 233 00:08:26,879 --> 00:08:28,720 administration operation down the line 234 00:08:28,720 --> 00:08:32,080 in the future. So, I think the the 235 00:08:32,080 --> 00:08:33,839 biggest impact you can have are the 236 00:08:33,839 --> 00:08:35,599 decisions you make at the very start of 237 00:08:35,599 --> 00:08:38,479 a project when it when it's barely more 238 00:08:38,479 --> 00:08:40,719 than just a need and a thought. Um, 239 00:08:40,719 --> 00:08:42,479 getting the design team involved in 240 00:08:42,479 --> 00:08:44,080 trying to figure out we need to reduce 241 00:08:44,080 --> 00:08:46,640 cost. We need to to meet initiatives. We 242 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:48,320 need to provide the needs for our 243 00:08:48,320 --> 00:08:50,399 students now and in the future, but 244 00:08:50,399 --> 00:08:52,640 let's figure out an innovative way to do 245 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:55,120 that. So, you're you're suggesting 246 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:56,399 essentially shredding before you 247 00:08:56,399 --> 00:08:58,959 sharette, right? Absolutely. It's really 248 00:08:58,959 --> 00:09:00,720 engage in deep conversation before you 249 00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:02,880 even get around the concept of what do 250 00:09:02,880 --> 00:09:05,680 we want this building to look like. Um 251 00:09:05,680 --> 00:09:07,200 yeah, really get down to what are the 252 00:09:07,200 --> 00:09:08,560 functions that we're trying to achieve 253 00:09:08,560 --> 00:09:10,800 as we put this thing together. 254 00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:12,720 Absolutely. and and providing the 255 00:09:12,720 --> 00:09:15,680 leadership um at the start of a project 256 00:09:15,680 --> 00:09:17,839 and through the life of a project. Even 257 00:09:17,839 --> 00:09:20,399 you know boiling that down to teachers 258 00:09:20,399 --> 00:09:22,640 and students and having an even an 259 00:09:22,640 --> 00:09:25,279 annual committee at each of the stu at 260 00:09:25,279 --> 00:09:26,880 each of the schools that have students 261 00:09:26,880 --> 00:09:28,720 and teachers involved. That way they can 262 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:31,040 carry that flame, you know, 20 years 263 00:09:31,040 --> 00:09:33,680 from now, way past when you and I are 264 00:09:33,680 --> 00:09:35,839 involved in it anymore. Right. And 265 00:09:35,839 --> 00:09:37,200 you've kind of talked a little bit about 266 00:09:37,200 --> 00:09:38,240 this, but I'm going to give you an 267 00:09:38,240 --> 00:09:39,360 opportunity to say a little more if it's 268 00:09:39,360 --> 00:09:41,440 on your mind. But my next question 269 00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:44,000 related to implementation barriers to 270 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:47,040 sustainable uh uh uh construction and 271 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:48,560 you do you want to touch a little bit 272 00:09:48,560 --> 00:09:51,920 more on that? Absolutely. Um cost is 273 00:09:51,920 --> 00:09:53,920 always the the first question. That's 274 00:09:53,920 --> 00:09:56,080 the first barrier. If it's going to cost 275 00:09:56,080 --> 00:09:58,640 me more, I I'm probably going to tell 276 00:09:58,640 --> 00:10:01,120 you no today, Graham. Um when you 277 00:10:01,120 --> 00:10:03,120 consider cost, you should also consider 278 00:10:03,120 --> 00:10:06,320 initial cost versus life cycle cost. 279 00:10:06,320 --> 00:10:08,560 Maintenance and facilities. uh there'll 280 00:10:08,560 --> 00:10:10,640 be my next meeting where they say now 281 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:13,120 tell me replacement cost and durability 282 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:16,320 is am I sacrificing anything uh down the 283 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:19,120 line that's going to cost more on the M 284 00:10:19,120 --> 00:10:21,519 side instead of the INI side because 285 00:10:21,519 --> 00:10:23,120 working with two different bud budgets 286 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:24,720 at the school district you're you're 287 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:26,560 just kind of passing the buck if if you 288 00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:30,240 don't consider that also effort um just 289 00:10:30,240 --> 00:10:32,000 just the fact that that's not the way 290 00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:34,399 we've always done something if you don't 291 00:10:34,399 --> 00:10:36,560 have the leadership involved to to kind 292 00:10:36,560 --> 00:10:39,040 of pass that down um to make sure 293 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:40,560 everyone's on the same page and 294 00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:42,959 everyone's car carrying that same torch. 295 00:10:42,959 --> 00:10:44,959 Those are some of the some of the items 296 00:10:44,959 --> 00:10:47,519 that we kind of run across as as 297 00:10:47,519 --> 00:10:49,839 obstacles to overcome. But again, those 298 00:10:49,839 --> 00:10:51,920 are the those are the challenges we face 299 00:10:51,920 --> 00:10:54,959 and we try to do our best to relay that 300 00:10:54,959 --> 00:10:58,160 in bite-sized pieces that that can be 301 00:10:58,160 --> 00:11:00,720 taken to a group of teachers or admin 302 00:11:00,720 --> 00:11:02,800 staff and show the benefits that it's 303 00:11:02,800 --> 00:11:04,959 going to provide for them immediately 304 00:11:04,959 --> 00:11:07,200 and in the future. And I think you point 305 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:09,680 out rightly that that that effort around 306 00:11:09,680 --> 00:11:11,040 leadership is really going to be 307 00:11:11,040 --> 00:11:13,279 important as we look to the future of 308 00:11:13,279 --> 00:11:15,040 construction in in public schools 309 00:11:15,040 --> 00:11:17,519 because it's pretty clear we cannot 310 00:11:17,519 --> 00:11:19,279 maintain the the kind of traditional 311 00:11:19,279 --> 00:11:21,519 path especially with high schools as we 312 00:11:21,519 --> 00:11:23,440 look down the road the the cost 313 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:25,680 structures are just getting too high. 314 00:11:25,680 --> 00:11:26,640 So, you're going to have to think 315 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:28,000 differently about how you serve your 316 00:11:28,000 --> 00:11:30,000 students while still meeting the 317 00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:32,240 state-of-the-art demands of of learning 318 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:34,240 that uh I think our students need to 319 00:11:34,240 --> 00:11:36,000 have, those experiences they need to 320 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:39,040 have. Now, is there a district that you 321 00:11:39,040 --> 00:11:41,200 would like to highlight as uh doing some 322 00:11:41,200 --> 00:11:44,560 remarkable work in this area? Well, you 323 00:11:44,560 --> 00:11:46,240 know, most of my experience has 324 00:11:46,240 --> 00:11:47,839 definitely been working with you. I know 325 00:11:47,839 --> 00:11:50,480 that Irving ISD is uh recently just 326 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:53,120 putting out a a wellness facility for 327 00:11:53,120 --> 00:11:55,040 their admin staff, for their teachers, 328 00:11:55,040 --> 00:11:57,760 for their students. Um it'll be a good 329 00:11:57,760 --> 00:11:59,760 new headquarters. They ran across some 330 00:11:59,760 --> 00:12:01,680 budget issues, but they're they're very 331 00:12:01,680 --> 00:12:04,079 focused on the biofilic design, which is 332 00:12:04,079 --> 00:12:06,959 very focused on uh the occupant 333 00:12:06,959 --> 00:12:09,200 connection to nature, um the occupant 334 00:12:09,200 --> 00:12:11,920 wellness, and focusing on um those 335 00:12:11,920 --> 00:12:14,800 sustainable sustainable initiatives uh 336 00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:16,480 that we've been talking about today. and 337 00:12:16,480 --> 00:12:19,120 they're finding ways to make sure that 338 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:20,800 uh the importance they've included in 339 00:12:20,800 --> 00:12:23,360 that is reflected in their decisions to 340 00:12:23,360 --> 00:12:25,519 build a facility that other people can 341 00:12:25,519 --> 00:12:28,399 come and tour. One of our one of our 342 00:12:28,399 --> 00:12:30,720 greatest request is show me a show me a 343 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:32,320 building where that's currently working 344 00:12:32,320 --> 00:12:35,440 and I'd like to talk to the staff. If 345 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:38,480 the staff is is bought in to the ideas 346 00:12:38,480 --> 00:12:40,560 and it came in at the budget you were 347 00:12:40,560 --> 00:12:42,959 looking for, it's its only benefit and 348 00:12:42,959 --> 00:12:45,440 it shows you an example of how it works. 349 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:46,959 Yeah. I've seen some of the renderings 350 00:12:46,959 --> 00:12:48,880 of what you're describing in Irving and 351 00:12:48,880 --> 00:12:51,200 that is a very exciting project and and 352 00:12:51,200 --> 00:12:53,120 I I can't wait to see that come to 353 00:12:53,120 --> 00:12:55,440 fruition and and my encouragement to any 354 00:12:55,440 --> 00:12:57,279 superintendents out there is that they 355 00:12:57,279 --> 00:13:00,320 visit buildings that are uh more future 356 00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:02,800 oriented that um um are less traditional 357 00:13:02,800 --> 00:13:06,880 in in uh um in construction and modeling 358 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:09,920 and and to look at those things. Now 359 00:13:09,920 --> 00:13:11,760 Graham, you know, you've done this a 360 00:13:11,760 --> 00:13:14,560 long time. Now, if a district wanted to 361 00:13:14,560 --> 00:13:16,880 explore more deeply into this work, how 362 00:13:16,880 --> 00:13:18,399 would they go about contacting you and 363 00:13:18,399 --> 00:13:20,320 arranging for a deeper conversation? 364 00:13:20,320 --> 00:13:21,600 Well, they could definitely reach us at 365 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:24,880 our company website at architects.com. 366 00:13:24,880 --> 00:13:26,880 Uh, feel free to contact us through 367 00:13:26,880 --> 00:13:29,519 learn or through Dr. Dr. Brunland. We've 368 00:13:29,519 --> 00:13:31,279 got a extensive history that we can work 369 00:13:31,279 --> 00:13:32,959 together and he can get you into contact 370 00:13:32,959 --> 00:13:35,360 with us or anyone that he feels that's 371 00:13:35,360 --> 00:13:37,040 that's the right contact for the next 372 00:13:37,040 --> 00:13:39,200 step. Wonderful. Well, thank you Graham 373 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:40,560 for being a part of the important work 374 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:42,399 of supporting our students in schools 375 00:13:42,399 --> 00:13:44,079 and thank you for your participation in 376 00:13:44,079 --> 00:13:47,560 a learn podcast.