Our Philosophy


Our Teachers, Students, and Community

We believe that our courses must be responsive to our students’ interests and goals, our individual teachers’ experiences and expertise, and the resources of our local and world communities.  We also recognize the necessity to adapt quickly to innovations in technology, design, and education.

Students who have successfully completed our courses have pursued advanced studies and careers in architecture, engineering, design, the fine arts, urban planning, and new media. The experiences and input of these alumni are a resource that is beyond value, and they will continue to significantly influence the evolution of our courses.


Product versus Process

The art object (a drawing, model, et cetera) serves two purposes.  It is a physical manifestation of an art idea that a designer uses to communicate with others.  It is also a device that is used by a designer for the purpose of external visualization to aid in the recording and further development of a design idea.  In this model, participants create tangible evidence of their design process not only to communicate their ideas to others, but also to externally visualize and develop a set of ideas that have depth and richness.  There must be a final product, but it is the development of the product the gives meaning to the overall process.


The Power of Virtual Reality in Education

Designers need to consider and solve problems individually and in groups.  Traditionally, designers have used graphic techniques to visualize, refine, resolve, and communicate their thoughts and perceptions universally, as well as to keep track of and organize these ideas.  In our Computer Aided Design sequence, students develop the ability to use digital design tools to create virtual objects and environments.  These artifacts can be explored individually or collaboratively to simulate problems and their possible solutions.  Students who participate in this program develop skills that are fundamental to the interpretation, criticism, and presentation of design intentions.


Nature?  Nurture.

The skills involved in any form of communication are not restricted to the ‘talented’.  Communication can be learned, mastered, and used as a practical tool to formulate solutions to design problems.  Just as the development of verbal skills contributes to a mastery of poetry, civics, philosophy, and the like, an individual’s fluency with the graphic language corresponds directly to the development of the spatial visualization skills necessary to set design parameters, convey ideas, and readily solve design problems.