You don't want to miss this talk!
Join us on December 8th for this extremely timely talk!
Work in corrections or youth justice?
Engaged in the social justice movement?
Are you a designer or architect?
No matter your interest in the topic, this is one talk you can't afford to miss!
Our founder, Christine Cowart, will join Janet Roche, faculty member and Alumni Council member of Boston Architectural College (BAC), in a free, live-broadcast event, to discuss the implications of trauma-informed principles on correctional design. Christine will draw on her experience working in the correctional systems of three Northeastern states to explain how trauma, crime, and correctional facilities are all inextricably related, and what that means for correctional design as we seek a more just and equitable response for the future.
In addition to her Masters in Design for Human from BAC, Janet holds a B.S. in Social Work from Boston University and a Certificate of Business and Management from Harvard University Extension School. She owns Janet Roche Designs, specializing in universal design, and the the design of environments for those who are aging-in-place or seeking accommodations for other human conditions. A longtime advocate for dignity in design, Janet is also the host of Inclusive Designers Podcast, a collaborative forum for designers to share creative ideas for different human conditions.
Janet and Christine will be joined by Jana Belack. Jana holds both, a Masters of Architecture and a Bachelor's of Design Studies in Sustainability, from BAC. The impact of correctional design on inmates has long been at the center of her research. Her thesis focused on female offenders, their families, and how to transform incarceration into an uplifting community support network during and after their imprisonment. In 2017, she had the opportunity to visit the "best prisons in the world" across Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Canada. There, she witnessed other countries' approach to incarceration and offenders and the corresponding result of low recidivism, all with the added bonus of beautiful Scandinavian design!
The panel will address the real consequences of the prison environment on human biology, which results in lasting impacts on offenders, and provide an alternative approach to correctional design in light of these irrefutable facts.
Boston Architectural College is New England's largest independent college of spatial design. As part of the week-long celebration of the institution's 130th anniversary, this pivotal talk is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time.