Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Drury University

Outdoor Classrooms

  • 11/01/13
Drury

PHOTOS COURTESY OF DRURY UNIVERSITY

Drury University in Springfield, MO, has appeared on The Princeton Review’s Green College Guide four years in a row, and the university prioritizes outdoor learning spaces. In 2011, two campus buildings — Belle Hall and Turner Hall — were dismantled and Drury’s sustainability council collaborated with Drury students, staff, faculty and alumni to decide what to do with the space. The result was the Kellogg Green Space, a multi-use area for recreation, gardens, outdoor classrooms and more.

When then-president Todd Parnell’s father passed away, well-wishers gave donations to the green space in lieu of flowers, and this helped fund the outdoor classroom that now exists in the space. The design for the classroom utilized recycled parapet stones from Belle Hall and limestone cores from the newly constructed O’Reilly Family Event Center.

“The parapet stones link us to our Drury past on that site, and the chunks of limestone connect us to the substrate of our Ozarks hills and Karst geology — two things the Parnell family loves: Drury and the Ozarks,” says Director of Campus Sustainability Dr. Wendy Anderson.

Perhaps the most visible outdoor classroom on campus is located centrally in Burnham Circle. Classes often meet here in the spring, summer and fall. Drury architecture alumnus Jody Sarkodee-Adoo ’04 designed the classroom.

A smaller study space tucked between two buildings on the west side of campus, the Philosopher’s Table provides a quieter place for contemplation and reflection. Legend has it that if a student studies for an exam here, that student is sure to pass.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management November 2013 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • 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.

  • South Carolina District Starts Construction on $50M Middle School Renovation

    The Aiken County Public School District in North Augusta, S.C., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the $50-million renovation and expansion of North Augusta Middle School, according to a news release. The project’s funding comes from the 2024 renewal of a one-cent sales tax approved by local voters.

  • NWEA Report Recommends K–12 Natural Disaster Recovery Strategies

    The Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a K–12 assessment and research organization, recently announced the release of a new playbook for schools and communities recovering from extreme weather events, according to a news release.

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.