Past Feature Stories

Designing Solutions in the Collaboratorium for #RealCollege Students

Dec 13, 2019

The Collaboratorium played an integral part in the success of the #RealCollege 2019 Summit, hosted by the WHI in September 2019. Complementing the overall conference program, conference participants had the opportunity to participate in a special design session in the Collaboratorium to develop innovative approaches to two challenges in the #RealCollege movement: instilling a culture of care, and addressing student housing.

Led by personnel from the Education Design Lab and Arizona State University, participants engaged in a series of interactive, engaging activities. The design session made full use of the Collaboratorium's resources, including digital "brainstorming" in the Digital Collaboration Room, intimate and in-depth conversations, developing unique opportunity canvases in small groups, and sharing information on the 20-foot projection screen.

As Education Design Lab Designer Leslie Daugherty shared, "The Collaboratorium at Houston Community College is the ideal venue for running a design session. Not only is the layout conducive for creativity and design, but the multiple design spaces and tactile technology capabilities allow participants to easily and quickly collaborate in both small and large groups and to share out ideas in real-time.

Program director Laura Williamson was an essential player in the overall success of our design session. She welcomed us into the space and provided both the presenters and the participants with a unique and seamless design experience, guiding us to take full advantage of the resources. As a result, we were able to incorporate hands-on interactions, both physical and virtual, and to sustain the group’s active engagement for the full two hours during the last session of the last day of the multi-day conference. We highly recommend this space for all of your future design sessions!"