Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

DLR Group Acquires Two Education Design Firms

  • By Matt Jones
  • 08/23/21

Integrated design firm DLR Group recently announced the acquisitions of two major education design firms stationed on the east and west coasts. The San Diego-based BakerNowicki Design Studio and the Washington, D.C.-based Bowie Gridley Architects (BGA) will expand DLR Group’s reach to K–12 clients all around the U.S.

“By joining forces with these exceptional design firms, DLR Group is enhancing our competitive position in K–12 education on both coasts,” said DLR Group Senior Principal Jim French, FAIA. “We’ve added expertise in design and educational funding in California, as well as planning and design for private, independent K–12 school clients in the Northeast to elevate DLR Group as the premier education design practice.”

BakerNowicki Design Studio was founded in 2011 and focuses exclusively on educational architecture for K–12 and higher education facilities. One of the organization’s specialties is an intimate knowledge of education funding in California. The firm will operate as DLR Group|BakerNowicki within the San Diego market, and it will work alongside DLR Group’s K–12 studios in Los Angeles, Riverside, Sacramento, and San Francisco.

Bowie Gridley Architects, meanwhile, specializes in master planning and design for K–12 independent school clients. According to a news release, it brings to the table specializations in performing arts, museums, preservation, higher education and hospitality design, as well as a variety of experience and its reputation along the Atlantic Coast and in the northeastern United States. BGA will combine its operations with DLR Group in a new Washington, D.C., location in spring 2022.

BakerNowicki brings 28 design professionals and Bowie Gridley Architects 24 design staff to the DLR Group’s ranks. Both firms’ project teams will be able to provide clients with a deep design experience across the fields of engineering, interiors, high performance design, landscaping, science and technology, and various specialized design services.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Launches New Emergency Communications System

    The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) recently deployed a new emergency notification and incident management system for its campus, according to a news release. The university partnered with 911Cellular to launch Safe@UTC, a smartphone app allowing university officials to communicate and respond during emergency situations.

  • Wold Architects & Engineers Acquires VPS Architecture

    Full-service planning, architecture, and engineering firm Wold Architects & Engineers recently announced that it has acquired VPS Architecture, according to a news release. The move will help strengthen Wold’s education and public-sector design expertise, industries in which both companies have strong pre-existing ties and relationships.

  • Vanderbilt to Partner with ABM for Campus Preservation and Modernization

    Vanderbilt University recently announced that it has selected ABM Performance Solutions for a preservation and modernization project at its New York City campus, according to a news release. ABM will deliver its end-to-end ABM Performance Solutions (APS) model to manage critical operations during renovation and maintenance.