Wellness by Design: Rethinking Educational Spaces
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Register
- Attendees - $50
NeoCon Presentation Description: What if schools were designed as one of our most powerful tools for supporting well-being? This session rethinks educational environments through the Bentonville Schools Downtown Master Plan, presenting a model where learning spaces actively support physical, social, and emotional health.
By integrating flexible class clusters, outdoor learning terraces, shared dining and arts spaces, and strong connections to the surrounding city, integrating community partnerships into the curriculum, the project demonstrates how architecture can strengthen whole-child wellness while positioning schools as vital civic infrastructure. Attendees will leave with adaptable strategies applicable across education, workplace, and civic interiors.
Tanya Gershon, AIA
Director
Marble Fairbanks Architects
Tanya Gershon, AIA, is a Director at Marble Fairbanks Architects with over 15 years of experience shaping cultural, civic, and academic projects. She leads clients and teams from early visioning through construction, known for an engagement-driven approach that transforms complex goals into cohesive, buildable environments. Her work spans a wide range of project types, with deep experience in educational settings from Kâ12 through higher education, emphasizing innovative learning models, healthy material selection, and the integration of architecture, interiors, finishes, and furniture to support wellbeing, community, and long-term institutional growth.
Katie Shima, AIA, CPHC
Senior Architect
Marble Fairbanks Architects
Katie Shima, AIA, CPHC, is a Senior Architect at Marble Fairbanks Architects and a Certified Passive House Consultant with over 15 years of experience designing high-performance workplace, cultural, educational, and civic environments. She brings an artistic sensibility and deep knowledge of materiality and craft, with a focus on wellness, material performance, and spaces that support everyday use.
