Creating a Creative

EnvironmentBy: Hayden McDuffee,

Alex Miller, William Mark Strnad, and Lisa Stump

STUDENT SURVEY“How do you feel when you enter an academic building?”

BORED

indifferent

SCARED!

OPPRESSED

Depressed

STUDENT SURVEY

“Better aesthetics. Hire a designer.”

“more color”

“Creativity, giving the buildings more personality than just the square brick, steel, and glass prisons.”

“COLOR!”

“more vibrant atmosphere”

“What can be done to improve this?”

One of the BEST schools in the Midwest

#16 Least Beautiful Campus

#15 Least Happy Campus

5 Environmental Characteristics that Produce Greater Creativity

Complexity of Visual Detail

View of Natural Environment

Use of Natural Materials

Fewer Soft/Faded Colors

Less use of Manufactured Materials

“The Potential Role of the Physical Environment in Fostering Creativity” By Janetta McCoy and Gary W. Evans published in Creativity Research Journal, Vol 14 Issue 3&4. October 2002

ColorsBlue: Cool and Calm

Yellow: Sunny and Cheerful

Red: Exciting and Stimulating

WHITE: Clarity and Freshness

DULLS EMOTIONS.

University of British Columbia study (2009) and Global Healing Center Stress Management Techniques

Our idea…

Are you ready for this?

Stimulate the SensesStimulate the Mind

1.Change the gray strip in buildings to red. (School Spirit, Enhances Creativity and Mood)

Three Part Plan:

2. Host a mural design competition for students to design and paint a mural on biggest, most boring walls in academic buildings.

3. PAINT AN ACCENT WALL IN EACH CLASSROOM TO IMPROVE THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

BEFOREAFTER

This is a Starting

Block

Who should we talk to, if we want to make this happen?

Mike Gosz (VP Undergraduate Affairs)gosz@iit.edu

John Collins (VP Business & Administration, Head of Facilities)collinsj@iit.edu