Program History

SiteSeeing was piloted in seven Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota public schools over a period of 4 years. Fourteen teachers have been trained in the curriculum and 525 students have participated, with the assistance of 41 University of Minnesota College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture student mentors and professionals who either volunteered their time in the classroom or received Service Learning credit for their participation in the program.

The interdisciplinary curriculum has been taught in a variety of learning environments and to a range of learners. In the case of English Language Learners, for example, school officials noted that the curriculum, and the inherent symbols used in design, helped students with their vocabulary and expression of ideas, as well as serving to better connect them to their new environment.

In other cases, students who would not normally participate in classroom activities were unusually engaged by the exercises and discussions. Those students would often arrive in class with assignments constructed from torn-off box bottoms and images ripped out of found magazines and newspapers. Yet they would often present what they made with some very astute observations about the neighborhood. For students who are already interested in the issues of design, the SiteSeeing program provided opportunities to engage their talents in ways not ordinarily included in standard curricula.

In addition to serving diverse student populations, the curriculum has been adapted in a variety of ways to coordinate with particular school programs and projects. An International Baccalaureate/Primary Years Programme, for example, designed a Unit of Inquiry based upon the SiteSeeing program. The unit, entitled, "Yours, Mine, Ours," was designed to help students investigate the concept of urban planning for a community with consideration to current and future residents and their needs.

In another case the curriculum was modified to coordinate with one school’s local Neighborhood Revitalization Program planning process, examining a real-world development. The background work and student proposals for a new neighborhood park were presented to the local neighborhood organization, and the neighborhood organizer was so impressed with the innovation of the students’ ideas that he requested a list of items from the students’ park designs to include in the neighborhood’s master plan requirements.

Interest in the SiteSeeing Program has been significant, particularly within the public sector. Mayors from both Minneapolis and St. Paul have attended final student presentations, as have County Commissioners and community organizers, all in an effort to show support for the students and glean insight into how youth would like to see their communities develop.

Participating Schools:

Benjamin E. Mays Magnet for Communication Arts and Leadership
Bethune Elementary
Edison High School
J.J. Hill Montessori
Marcy Elementary
South High School
Washburn High School

Participating Organizations and Institutions:

Assembly of Architects
Minneapolis Public Schools
Minnesota Historical Society
University of Minnesota College of Design
Sonoma Community Center