Walls Stand Up to Demands of Nursing Education

Acrovyn

Acrovyn by Design partition walls stood up to the rigorous demands of a nursing lab environment, while also fitting in well with the lab’s “healthcare aesthetic.”

A reflection of the growing healthcare occupational trend is apparent in Pellissippi State Community College’s Nursing Program, where enrollment at the Knoxville, TN, campus continues to increase. The college’s administrators wanted to transform a single, open lab space and a classroom into three protected, unique spaces. The solution included Acrovyn by Design on partition walls to artfully designate separate areas.

The learning environment in the Jenny & Randy Boyd Building at the Strawberry Plains campus required renovations of the 24,250 available-square-feet to meet the needs of both students and faculty.

The addition of an operable wall was necessary to better accommodate multiple teaching scenarios, such as learning how to perform and master skills prior to entering the obstetric and pediatric clinical sites.

It was essential that the walls in the nursing skills lab could contend with a busy, educational atmosphere. This required the walls to be durable and easy to clean. The design team focused on delivering a look that exceeded all the project’s requirements for durability, professionalism and cleanliness.

“Our solution to put Acrovyn by Design on the partition walls makes them as beautiful as they are easy to clean. We are also pleased with the durability Acrovyn by Design brings to Pellissippi’s nursing skills lab. In a dynamic learning space with moving nursing beds and carts, protection for the operable walls was imperative,” says Bill Vinson of Community Tectonics Architects. “Acrovyn by Design’s Organic Collection fit beautifully into the lab’s healthcare aesthetic.”

Pleased with the beautiful modification of its nursing skills lab, Pellissippi administrators requested that Acrovyn by Design be placed on additional partition walls in the pediatric skills lab, the obstetrics lab and another classroom at the Strawberry Plains campus as well.

www.acrovynbydesign.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • S4L Announces 2026 Education Design Showcase Winners

    Spaces4Learning is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2026 Education Design Showcase! Now in its 27th year, the annual awards program honors innovative solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction across K–12 and higher education.

  • Quattrocchi Kwok Architects Opens New Office in Denver

    Education planning and design firm Quattrocchi Kwok Architects (QKA) recently announced that it has opened a new office in Denver, Colo., the firm’s third overall. QKA is headquartered in Santa Rosa, Calif., and runs an East Bay Area office in Oakland.

  • Barbara Vick Western Branch

    Barbara Vick Western Branch

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The Barbara Vick Western Branch has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of Renovation.

  • Universities Continue to Launch Multimillion-Dollar Campus Transformations

    What makes the current wave of campus development especially noteworthy is its emphasis on multi-use functionality and community integration. Institutions are no longer investing solely in academic or athletic facilities in isolation. Instead, they are creating destinations that blend recreation, health, housing, and event-driven economic activity.