Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

The Slow Return to Normalcy

  • By Matt Jones
  • 10/01/21

It’s hard to believe that another school year is well underway. More students, faculty and staff than not have returned to campus for full-time, in-person learning at K–12 and higher education institutions around the country. The COVID-19 pandemic isn’t in our rearview mirror quite yet, but after 18 months, it feels like there’s very little to say about it that we haven’t heard a thousand times. From wearing a mask to maintaining social distancing to getting the (now FDA-approved) vaccine if you’re eligible, the basic guidelines of living during a pandemic are pretty well established.

In the meantime, students especially seem enthused about the opportunity to resume real life and see their friends again. The benefits—both social and educational—of being surrounded by our peers instead of staring at a computer screen are too many to count. It’s nice being able to make small talk in the hallways again, or for a teacher to notice a wave of confusion ripple across the class during a lecture and clarify a point in real time. It’s not as nice having to set your alarm for 7 a.m. instead of 7:45 for an 8 a.m. class, but every situation has its drawbacks.

The content in this issue of Spaces4Learning reflects our odd hybrid state of getting back to normal, but still being mindful of a pandemic. You’ll find pieces on how schools can best utilize ESSER funds. The importance of handwashing and other basic hygiene practices. How schools can maintain and monitor indoor air quality.

But you’ll also get a glimpse of what vendors and educational institutions alike have been up to in the last year and a half. This glimpse comes via the results of our summer awards program, New Product of the Year, and our fall awards, the Education Design Showcase. The New Product Award program celebrates the exemplary product development achievements of manufacturers and vendors in the education industry. And the Education Design Showcase lets institutions show off innovative and practical solutions in planning, design, architecture and construction. All of the winners in both competitions represent the finest instances of ingenuity, resiliency and resourcefulness under pressure.

This article originally appeared in the Fall 2021 issue of Spaces4Learning.

About the Author

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

Featured

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • Phoenix School District Breaks Ground on New Prep Academy

    The Creighton Elementary School District near Phoenix, Ariz., recently broke ground on a campus replacement for Biltmore Preparatory Academy, according to a news release. The new space will allow the school to expand its enrollment by 50 percent for K–8 students and accommodate modern, collaborative learning styles.

  • Nashville Elementary School Receives LEED Gold Certification

    Goodlettsville Elementary School, part of Metro Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tenn., recently achieved LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), according to a news release. The 81,750-square-foot school opened in 2023 and was designed by Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC).

  • 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.