WELCOME �EDUCATORS & VOLUNTEERS!

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Bathrooms/

Logistics

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WE APPRECIATE EACH OF YOU!!

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Design LAB is only made possible by your participation and support. THANK YOU!

WHO RUNS DESIGN LAB?

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• Executive Director
• Formal Education Experience
• Informal Education Experience
• Cincinnati Zoo
• Newport Aquarium
• Ohio River Foundation
• MA of Conservation Biology at Miami University/MBA
• Past President of USGBC SW Ohio
• DEI Certificate

Christen Lubbers

Design LAB: Learn + Build

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Mission: create appreciation, awareness, & improvement of the built environment through education

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• Construction Tours
• Drinks with Design
• Dine with Design
• Other Various Programming

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DESIGN LAB’S BOARD OF TRUSTEES

• Executive Committee
• Ali Hubbard - Board President
• David Wright - Vice President
• Kevin Mire - Treasurer
• Jason East - Secretary
• Greg Hammond - Past President

• Trustees
• Brooke Behnfeldt - GBBN
• Chris Hopper - Skanska USA
• Kit Houston - Taft Law
• Charlie Jahnigen - SHP
• Will Johnson - Messer Construction
• Jeffrey Millard - CMTA, Inc
• Obi Nwankwo - Megen Construction
• Ahmad Saleh - Turner Construction
• Timothy Sharp - KZF Design
• James Stapleton - PIVOT

DESIGN LAB COMMITTEE

• Volunteers
• Brad Dunn – Retired Bliss
• Melanie Copenhaver – Champlin
• Mary Kate Genis – KZF Design
• Michelle Mahoney – Merus
• Paul Michels – Black & Veatch
• Rachel Hock – Schaefer
• Cheyenne Hughes - Hixson
• Tyler Zembrodt
• Abby Sansom - CMTA
• Taylor Taluskie - Terracon
• Educators
• Leslie Burklow – E.H. Greene
• Kathy Grimm – Colerain Middle School
• Cynthia Tisue – Covedale Elementary
• Rhonda Twitty - Spencer Center

WHY DO WE DO DESIGN LAB?

We Have So Much Fun!

Design LAB 2026

SANCTUARY

2026 SCHEDULE�(tentatively)

First Visit December 2025

Project Intro January

Work Period Jan – May

Material Pick-Up February 16

Design LAB Exhibit May 9-16

Jury Event May 11

Awards Ceremony May 16

Appreciation Party Summer 2026

Exposing Students to Architecture, Design, and Building

• First half of the program is learning the basics and figuring out client/site/sketches

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• Second half of the program is all about trying it out & showing off what they’ve learned

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• Teamwork is a focus

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• Career opportunities – share your experiences!

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• Option to add more to the program

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What’s Next?

• Team Assignments will go out!

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• Reach out to your educator/volunteer as soon as possible to go over how you will tackle 2026

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RESOURCES�

Bi-Weekly Emails & Website links

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Educator & Volunteer Resource Guide

• worksheets
• what NEEDS to be done?

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Preliminary Visit

Priority: Get Students Excited!

• Classroom logistics
• group sizes
• 4 students is ideal
• check with Design LAB for larger groups

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• Marshmallow & spaghetti build (or alternatives)

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• Introductions
• get to know your students, let them get to know you
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• Pre-assessments

Week 1:

Introduction

Priority: Layout Program & Theme

• Powerpoint #1
• Set Expectations
• The Design Process
• Understanding the Theme

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• Explaining your role

Week 2: Structures & Spatial Awareness

Priority: Understand Basic Building Concepts

• Powerpoint for reference, if you want to use it

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• Very Active Lesson!

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• If there is an option to do this in a larger/more open room - use it!

Priority: Understand Basic Building Concepts

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Week 3: Sustainable Building Design

Priority: Understand Sustainability in Design

• First worksheet

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• Start thinking about model

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• Explain how sustainability works in your career

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• Explain why it is important to build with the environment and people in mind - and what hurdles exist there

Week 4:

Build Your Dream Home

Plan/Section/Elevation

Priority: Financial Literacy

• Worksheets

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• Variations (everyone gets 1 loan approved or multiple levels)

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• Explain how this relates to your job

Priority: Understand Plan/Section/Elevation

• Bell Pepper (cut ahead of time if needed)

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• Bring documents of projects you’re working on if possible

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• Powerpoint available, but not necessary

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Priority: Understand Plan/Section/Elevation

Week 5:

Drawing to Scale

Priority: Students Understand Scale (Enough)

• No tears!

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• Age-Appropriate introduction

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Week 6: Client & Site Selection

Priority: Students Decide Site & Client

• Teams should be decided on by now (we recommend 4 per group)

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• Research-heavy section

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• Trifold Material

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• Explain how this process is similar to or differs from how it works in your career

Week 7: Design Ideas

Priority: Solidify Ideas

• Worksheet #2

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• Decision making day

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• Explain how this exercise relates to the real world - how does this look in your career?

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Week 8:

Peer Presentations

Priority: Practice Critiques & Presentations

• Revamped Jury Sheet to be more student-friendly

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• Peer-reviews are an important part of this process, but can be done in different parts of the process

Week 9-15: Modeling

Priority: BUILD!

Modeling

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• Material Drive
• Glue/hot glue/tape
• Scissors, zip snip, etc
• Allow for mistakes!
• Fail Forward
• Let the students do the work

Priority: BUILD!

Week 16:

Mini Design LAB Exhibit

Reality:

19 Weeks

Priority: Choose Your Class’ Model!

• Only one model can represent each class

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• Utilize Jury Sheet for this

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• Utilize Trifold materials

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• Up to teacher how this goes - students can decide, other classes can, teachers can decide, etc

See You at the EXHIBIT!!

• Project Drop Off

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• Exhibit Opens

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• Jury Event

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• Exhibit

Reception

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• Awards Ceremony

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• Exhibit Closes

HEAR FROM THE EXPERTS!

• What role should the volunteer and teacher have in the program?

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• What if the volunteer cannot make it?

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• What if class is cancelled?

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• What other questions do you have?

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• What leads to success in the program?

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• What are the best & worst things to do in Design LAB?

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• Look at a few examples on Facebook

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• More Volunteers!

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• Stickers