Sanford Hall

On a project like Sanford 213, Jill Thompson’s design and planning expertise, empathy for an end user and passion for UGA shines through. "The project required a good amount of design and forethought – from the seating selection to the wall panels and stairs -- even down to the colors used. The patterns for the chairs were chosen for students based on what a team of us thought the students might appreciate. Everything else in the room was based off of that; we muted the other features of the room to make sure the seating could be the focal point. Another great selling point for the pattern was the durability and cleanability of it. That always plays a factor in what we should choose when thinking about any building material. I’m always asking myself: is this something that would be easy for custodial support to work with?”

End user empathy also determined some of the accessibility aspects within Sanford 213: “I’m left-handed, so it is always important I pay attention to the amount of both left and right-handed tablets being installed to the seats so that students can have an ambidextrous choice of where to sit and what works best for them. The space is also fully ADA compliant.  There is table seating and open areas above and below the studio classroom, making accessibility just as accommodating as all other classroom features.”

Finally, as an alumnus of the University of Georgia and current College of Environment and Design candidate for a PhD in Environmental Planning and Design, it is clear to see how Thompson's design work is rooted in her pride for the University of Georgia. “We worked with a design consultant who initially chose the colors blue and green for the seats in the lecture space. It looked great, but for me it didn't quite make sense. UGA’s colors needed to be in that room -- it's a signifier of the university itself. Large lecture halls can also resemble school pride.  When you walk into this room now, I believe not only can you say you’re a part of modernity, but you are in a room with some semblance of red, black, and white.  Branding is very much a big part of a student’s choice, and here at UGA, we are proud to be Georgia Bulldogs!  When there is a small element that can help share and portray that enthusiasm, I believe, we should try.”