This fall, 15 Student U students are taking on a real-world design challenge: reimagining two spaces they use every day, the upstairs student lounge and the outdoor area of The W.G. Pearson Center.
They’re working with Prism Design Lab, a Durham nonprofit that uses architecture, design, and art to help young people shape their communities. Architect Heather Ferrell founded Prism in 2022 and serves as its director. Prism reaches about 2,000 young people a year across Durham and Orange Counties. Its approach centers student voice: in its Youth Design Durham program, high school students designed a space for young creatives and presented their concept at City Hall. As Ferrell puts it, Prism provides the platform, and the students own their ideas.
At Student U, the process started with a simple prompt: sketch a place where you feel you belong. From those sketches, students named what they want in their own spaces, including comfort, coziness, room to hang out, and food. Since then, they’ve measured both spaces to document existing conditions, the first step toward scaled plans, drawings, and models of their ideas.
Tarahji joined the lab this session with a clear goal.
"I want to major in architecture," Tarahji said. "I've been drawn to building stuff and designing stuff."
Natalie, who has been part of the lab since the start, said the hands-on work is “sparking it up more” for her interest in architecture, and that creating spaces at Student U will benefit the community. Kingston has helped measure spaces and brainstorm ideas, and he already knows which project excites him most: “The lounge.”
Four mentors from NCCU’s pre-architecture program are working alongside the students. “A lot of the stuff we’re doing here is what you do in your first semester,” said Brandon, a senior. Kevin, a junior who transferred from Durham Tech, started his degree knowing nothing about architecture and ended up loving it. He sees the lab as a way to spread the word about the field and NCCU’s new architecture program. Kenzie hopes to show students that the university world is not as scary as it may seem.
Stay tuned as these leaders turn their ideas into designs for spaces built by students, for students
