About Students for Success

Hello all and welcome to the Colab 400 Phoenix Center project: Phoenix Rising. This interior design endeavor, undertaken by Syracuse University Interior Design Seniors and their professors, Jen Hamilton and Chris McCray, will aim to transform the after school program, the Phoenix Center, housed in the former Hillside school, into an environment that reflects their student’s aspirations, goals and potential. Throughout the spring 2011 semester, our team, Students for Success, will formulate a cohesive design scheme generated from a studio project completed in the fall of 2010. As a team, we will carry the project beyond schematic design, and into build-out. Through a diligent exploration of the potential of good design, we can transform the Phoenix Center into a place that enables achievement in its aspirations and goals.

History and Mission of the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection

The Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection, located in Syracuse, New York, is an after school program that encourages students to successfully complete their high school education and graduate. This program reaches out to students who exhibit two out of six risk factors:

poor attendance
over-age for grade level
failure in two or more core subjects
multiple school suspensions
low standardized test scores
living in poverty

The Hillside program approaches their goals by teaching 7th to 12th grade students career development and helping them with their homework, as well as providing mentoring and after school extra-curricular activities. Most importantly, Hillside works diligently to instill a sense of motivation, self-confidence and self-pride in their students. Their approach involves around the clock mentors who check-in with the students every morning at the students’ public high school, as well as transport them to and from their high school to the Phoenix Center, and eventually to their individual homes. Hillside is a successful and dedicated organization whose members are not just educational mentors but also act as life coaches and dependable adults these adolescents can turn to for support and stability.

Friday, February 4, 2011

Meeting Minutes 1.30.11


Our First Meeting

Finding Cohesive Elements
  • Color
  • Linear elements
  • Materials
  • Way finding
  • Sequencing
  • Text
    • Find a type face to use throughout our design
Benches in Library and Lobby could be made right away
  • Cushions could be a unifying element
  • Discuss possible maintenance issues with palette

Alison’s Hallway design
  • How to make it lighter?
    • Possibly change material or angle of panels
  • Integrate this idea into Becky’s library and Alexandra’s abacus

Table/Sculpture Design
  • So many possibilities
    • Partitions
    • Tables
      • Interactive
  • Possible Materials: MDF, cardboard, white board, plexi-glass
    • Could carve text into them
    • Possibly change form a little bit
      • Different slots/spaces
      • Multiple slots in different places to increase diversity
      • Add a chair holder or wall hook
        • Incorporate magazine string/abacus idea
        • Name Plates could be part of/replace check in system
          • Ability to personalize: create an identity
          • Could remove name plate from abacus and claim a board
            • Indicators on name plate of whether student needs homework assistance or not.
            • Name plate right of passage: a graduation wall
Next steps
  • 1st Deliverable: Cohesive design package
    • Tweak what we have for design proposals
  • Work on brochure/threefold/legal size
  • Come up with our mark/name for our firm
    • 5 blonds and a beard
  • Brochure
    • Markie’s entrance as the cover
      • Using the lines as a way to move through the brochure
    • SU and Phoenix Collaboration
    • Purpose: to raise money
      • Get student’s testimonials
      • Exhibit how the design will change the perception of Phoenix and what it does
    • Try and secure material and color samples
  • Start a Blog
    • Use inspiration boards
    • Include links to how design facilitates learning
    • Photos of existing space
    • Meeting Minutes
    • History of Hillside
  • Jen and Becky will work on tables and doing some sketches
    • Jen will bring in color samples
  • Work on finding some donations
    • Knoll: discontinued fabrics/swatches
Possible Schedule
  • Short Meetings on Wednesday
  • Longer Meetings on Fridays/weekends

Make some Lists
  • What we know
  • What we need
  • How we should go about doing things

Print out pieces. Make some models and sketches
  • Bring in sketch of brochure next week

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