Seven national parks sites have been selected as studio sites in the upcoming Designing the Parks student design competition. In early August, the Van Alen Institute, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and in partnership with the National Park Service, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and the National Parks Conservation Association, will launch an interdisciplinary academic design studios conducted by selected colleges and universities in these seven national parks. The purpose is to test the Designing the Parks principles against diverse conditions found within the national park system and within the context of the modern park visitor. The parks are:

Northeast Region:                Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site
 

National Capital Region:    Civil War Defenses of Washington DC
 

Southeast Region:               Biscayne National Park and Chattahoochee National Recreation Area
 

Midwest Region:                   Nicodemus National Historic Site
 

Intermountain Region:        Valles Caldera National Preserve
 

Pacific West Region:           San Juan Islands National Historical Park

The National Park Service submitted up to three possible sites per region to participate in the studios; Van Alen assembled its task force who reviewed the proposals and selected seven parks. Together, the sites represent a wide range of scales, issues, and environments. Each park’s unique character, issues, and challenges will provide the framework for developing studio projects using a common design and planning statement and generating a range of ideas and solutions that could apply to many different situations throughout the NPS and beyond.