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March 2020 \ BUILDING DIALOGUE \ 87 / CannonDesign in Denver / OPENING ART: The Roaring Fork School District’s Riverview PK-8 school reflects many of the leading-edge education design strategies CannonDesign is helping learning institutions implement to help students. FACING PAGE: The ongoing $43 million expansion and renovation of Shepardson Hall is one of several CannonDesign projects at the Colorado State University campus. THIS PAGE: The recently completed Jacquard Hotel was designed by CannonDesign. sion is how to feed the world,” says Barr. One standout feature of the 46,000-square-foot building: A 200- seat classroom in the round “is one of a handful in the U.S.,” says Barr. “It breaks the mold of your traditional classroom. There’s research coming out about how students interact with the teacher, and we can use a circular classroom to bring people in closer together to change the face of education a bit.” Milt Brown, project manager for CSU’s Capital Planning and Design division, says stakeholders from the university visited Oregon State University in Corvallis, a pioneer in circular class- rooms, to evaluate the idea. The big takeaway? “The physical characteristics of those class- rooms correlate with learning outcomes,” says Brown, noting students’ grades went up in circular classrooms as withdraw- al rates went down. “You’re face-to-face with other students, so there’s more accountability.” Brown calls CannonDesign “a great partner” based on four on-campus projects. “We’ve found them to be very creative and responsive to our needs and the clients’ needs,” he says. As education gravitates to online models, certain disciplines will always need a brick-and-mortar presence. Students in sci-