The Educational Design Institute hosted the first EDI Conference on March 30-31, 2010, at the Riley Center in Meridian, Miss. Thirty-four people -- including K-12 educators and physical plant managers, community college leaders, and MSU architecture students -- participated in the conference. Dr. Kenneth Tanner was the keynote speaker, and sessions covered the following topics:

-- An Update from Safe and Orderly Schools
-- Working with the Bureau of Building
-- Working with Federal Granting Agencies
-- 21st Century Classroom Design
-- Green Schools
-- LEED for Schools
-- Geo-source Heat Pumps

Based on the positive feedback from this year's conference, we are already looking forward to the 2011 EDI Conference.

EDI would like to thank Dr. Ed Davis with the MSU Rural Community College Leadership Program for his help with the 2010 conference.

A link to Dr. Tanner's page at the University of Georgia:

http://www.coe.uga.edu/welsf/faculty/tanner/index.html

Usually, the single most important decision concerning a new school is the location of the school.

The Mississippi School Design Guidelines says the following:

-- First of all, schools are the heart of the community as well as centers of education.
-- Secondly, site-planning decisions can cost or save money up-front and over the long run.
-- Thirdly, location of the school can reinforce or work against a community’s plans for future growth and development.
-- Finally, a school’s location affects all citizens; it mirrors local values and pride.

Review the Neighborhood Schools chapter of the MSDG for more information on siting schools:

http://www.edi.msstate.edu/guidelines/pdf/schools_in_everyday_life.pdf

Starting in January, 18 fourth-year architecture students and 16 interior design students began work on The Center for Professional Futures, an advanced professional school for high school students in Pontotoc, Union, and Lee counties. This state-of-the-art facility will be endowed by Toyota.

The architecture and interior design students, working collaboratively in the EDI studio, began their work by researching case studies of structural steel designs, sustainable or "green" interior spaces, and advanced schools. In February, they traveled to Frisco, Texas, to see the prototype for The Center for Professional Futures.

On Wednesday, April 21, the EDI studio presented nine different designs to the CREATE Foundation. The intent of the work was to build on the touchstone project (Frisco) and create a school that is both forward-thinking and appropriate for Mississippi.

The day after our presentation, the CREATE Foundation officially announced their plans for The Center for Professional Futures.

A link to NEMS360 (i.e. the Daily Journal's website):

http://nems360.com/view/full_story/7171544/article-Toyota-endowment-will-fund-advanced-vocational-center?

A link to WTVA:

http://www.wtva.com/news/local/story/Center-For-Professional-Futures-Coming/Zyf5ZXhkskCwtLT2tg2jUw.cspx