October 28-30, 2026 |
Kansas City, MO

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Thu Oct 29•8:00 AM – 9:00 AM

From Pilot to Districtwide Transformation: Strategic Pathways to School Redesign

EDsession (60 minutes in classrooms)TRACK 1: Learning Spaces, Reimagined — Evolving physical spaces shaping the future of learning

Transforming learning environments across an entire district can feel overwhelming, but strategic pilot programs can provide a powerful pathway to innovation. This session explores how school leaders can use pilot initiatives to test ideas, gather meaningful data, and build the momentum needed to support large-scale redesign. Participants will hear the real-world experience of a school district that implemented a thoughtful, year-over-year strategy to reimagine learning spaces and instructional models through a phased, evidence-based approach.

Speakers

Marisa Sergnese
Marisa SergneseApplied Research and Learning Consultant, Steelcase

More Information

Tags:Group A
Allow Registration:No
Capacity Unlimited:No
Indicate how the topic is applicable to Health, Safety, Welfare (HSW) Design credits.:This session qualifies for HSW accreditation because it directly addresses how the design and implementation of learning environments impact occupant wellbeing, safety, and overall effectiveness. Through the lens of district-wide transformation, participants will explore how pilot initiatives can be used to responsibly test and evaluate changes to physical learning spaces; such as layout, furniture, circulation, and environmental conditions, before large-scale implementation. These pilots generate meaningful data on factors tied to HSW outcomes, including student and educator wellbeing, cognitive engagement, physical safety, accessibility, and equitable use of space. By examining a real-world, phased approach to redesign, attendees will gain insight into how evidence-based decision-making reduces risk, improves environmental quality, and ensures that learning spaces support healthy, safe, and inclusive experiences for all users. The session emphasizes a systematic process for assessing and refining design solutions, aligning directly with HSW criteria related to occupant health, life safety, and the welfare of school communities.
Learner Engagement:This session is designed as an interactive “pilot lab” rather than a lecture by focusing on relevance, experience, collaboration, and problem-solving. We will begin by having participants select real challenges they face , then draw on their prior experiences to surface what has and hasn’t worked. Guide them through a rapid design sprint used to create a small-scale pilot initiative that defined meaningful data (beyond test scores), and plan for iteration. A gallery walk and peer feedback will be used to build momentum and connect how small pilots lead to larger system change, then close by helping them identify how to scale through validation and storytelling. By engaging educators in active, hands-on design and reflection, we will model the very learning environments and innovation processes needed to test ideas, gather actionable insights, and confidently drive large-scale school redesign.
Learning Objective 1:Understand how pilot programs can accelerate school redesign. Participants will learn how strategically designed pilot environments allow districts to test new learning space concepts and instructional models, gather meaningful data, and validate innovative approaches before scaling them across multiple schools.

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EDsession (60 minutes in classrooms)Session TypeTRACK 1: Learning Spaces, Reimagined — Evolving physical spaces shaping the future of learningSession Track
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Tags:Group E
Allow Registration:No
Capacity Unlimited:No
Indicate how the topic is applicable to Health, Safety, Welfare (HSW) Design credits.:NA
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Allow Registration:No
Capacity Unlimited:No
Indicate how the topic is applicable to Health, Safety, Welfare (HSW) Design credits.:N/A
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Allow Registration:No
Capacity Unlimited:No
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