What We Believe

We believe that great design helps students and teachers do great things.

01Passion 02Collaboration03Sustainability
01 Passion

Learning environments have a powerful impact on education. Every member of the Fanning Howey team is aligned behind our mission to design facilities that maximize positive educational outcomes and improve student performance.

We passionately believe that successful design arises from a well-conceived response to the needs of the learning environment. As a result, our approach is intentionally student-centered. We are committed to using our deep expertise to create future-ready educational communities that thrive in a rapidly-changing world.

Fanning Howey thought leaders recently spoke to Edutopia about The Architecture of Ideal Learning Environments.
02 Collaboration

Listening, asking the right questions, and developing empathy are key aspects of our process. There is a time to be quiet and listen — to ask the right questions of the experts and community members. We respect and welcome the contributions of the educator, the Board member, the community and the taxpayer.

Doing this well can uncover complex issues lying just below the surface of a problem. We are hands-on collaborators with stakeholders, surfacing hopes and dreams, working through real-world constraints, discussing big ideas and the smallest of details.

Then, there is a time to pivot to leading the team, through the myriad options and possibilities to the best way forward. Leadership, to us, is never about the imposition of our will; it’s the soft skills of leading a committee to consensus, or bringing a divided community together. We know how to keep the process efficient, fun and friendly.

At Fanning Howey, we believe in providing strong leadership to help students, teachers and communities move toward a better future.

03 Sustainability

Fanning Howey believes that sustainability is crucial to a thriving, resilient learning community.

As architects, interior designers and engineers, we have a responsibility to preserve resources and create a better world for future generations. That is why our firm is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council and an ENERGY STAR® partner. Our internal thought leadership program connects professionals from multiple disciplines and offices to promote understanding of sustainable issues and encourage innovation.

Previously named one of the Top 100 Green Design Firms by Engineering News-Record, Fanning Howey has experience with everything from LEED-certified buildings to Net Zero-ready campuses.

Fanning Howey team members designed Colonel Smith Middle School to be the first Net-Zero K-12 school in the state of Arizona.