An Interview with Magda Mostafa: Pioneer in Autism Design
In 2002, Magda Mostafa, a then-PhD student at Cairo University, was given an exciting project: to design Egypt’s first educational centre for autism. The young architect set herself down to the task of researching into autism design, certain she’d soon find guidelines and accessibility codes to direct her through the process (after all, about one […]
Deep Accessibility and Autistic Space
Blog post on WordPress by Ian Ford Sept 3, 2013 Accessibility has historically been focused on creating more inclusive products and spaces for people with mobility disabilities. However in recent years there has been more of a focus on how to address sensory issues (i.e. Deaf Space.) We recently came across this fascinating blog post […]
Welcome to the Wellness Center: A New Breed of Recreation Design
Until recently, student health and counseling services have predominantly been offered independently of athletics and recreation. But as institutions contemplate a more unified approach to health and wellness, the boundaries of these traditionally separated campus services are becoming blurred. Many believe that unifying these various programs and services under one roof is in the best […]
Creating Schools for All Students, Disabled or Not
At a forum last week at the Center for Architecture, three architects presented stunning designs with this problem in mind and educators from the field and the Department of Education responded with their own ideas. The evening’s event, which I moderated, was part of the Center’s exhibition on The Edgeless School: Design for Learning.
New Michigan School for the Deaf in Flint is cutting-edge
The new Michigan School for the Deaf in Flint, MI is a 80,000-square-foot, 26-classroom building that includes state of the art design and technology. All classrooms, and even some hallways, can accomodate flat-panel TVs and smartboards. Additionally the gym and cafeteria/auditorium feature large projector screens that can display game scores and schoolwide annoucements. All of […]
Designing for Autism: Spatial Considerations
Last week we looked at the different sensory sensitive approaches to lighting design for autism. We saw how contradictory recommendations have arisen from a lack of reliable research specific to autism and lighting. Conflicting recommendations are not limited to lighting. They can be found among nearly every aspect of autism design, including but not limited […]