My big vision is...
CCNY CAMPUS PLAN OPEN HOUSE SUMMARY
NOVEMBER 2024
I’d like to see...
The City College of New York (CCNY) is developing a campus plan to meet the challenges of the future.
The plan will align investments in campus facilities, buildings, spaces & grounds to:
• SUPPORT student success, scholarship & teaching
• IMPROVE the campus experience
• AMPLIFY the cultural impact of the institution
• FORTIFY a sustainable future for CCNY
CCNY is working with a team of planners, architects, landscape architects & engineers that are being guided by direct engagement with stakeholders, campus leadership, students, faculty & staff across the CCNY community.
Engagement Overview
Engagement with stakeholders, users, and the CCNY community is central to developing the CCNY Campus Plan. During the inital phase of the Campus Plan, interviews and focus groups were held with senior campus leadership from the academic, operational, and administrative branches of the institution.
STRATEGY
In a parallel effort, the planning team also began to explore and catalogue physical conditions of the campus, including buildings, grounds, open spaces, and the neighborhood interface. With a understanding of the physical conditions and CCNY’s strategic priorities, reaching out to the larger City College community including students, faculty, and staff began.
In Fall 2024, the Visioning & Priorities stage, engagement was conducted using two distinct modalities, allowing both in-person and virtual engagement methods.
• In-Person Open House held on November 14, 2024
• Online Survey open for three weeks from November 4th—22nd, 2024
In-person interactions during the Open House established relationships and the convenience of the online survey help the planning team form a strong picture of community priorities.
“My biggest concern is to make sure that students have current equipment, materials, and resources. Making the environment more physically welcoming and well-kept.”
“I love the familiar community and representation through clubs.”
“My big idea for CCNY is to make Convent Ave a walking/social mall area with no cars.”
In-Person Open House Event
Thursday, November 14
OVERVIEW
The Open House gathered input from students, staff, and faculty of CCNY in a welcoming, interactive environment. By creating space for community members to share their experiences of the campus, the project team gained clarity on pressing issues throughout campus. The event was held in the North Academic Center (NAC), where a greeter standing out front directed people to the event. After signing in, participants circulated through a series of stations with various modes to give input on campus facilities, programs and offerings. Stations were thematically organized, ensuring that participants left feedback on a wide range of topics critical to the development of the campus plan.
PARTICIPATION
Stations grouped by program area had interactive activities where attendees could leave their responses. Project team members staffed each station and were available to answer any questions. To encourage participates to visit each station, a punch-card incentive was utilized. After completing a station’s activities, a team member punched the raffle card. After completing all activities at each station, the raffle cards were collected for a chance to win either one of six $25 gift cards to campus dining or a merch package from the campus bookstore.
Campus Plan Online Survey
134 open house attendees
GOALS
The goals of the Open House were:
• Introduce CCNY campus community members to the campus plan project and the long-term impact it will have.
• Gain insight into stakeholder priorities that will help shape the plan.
• Build connections between the project team and stakeholders, creating familiarity and a relationship base for future discussions.
Responses collected from November 4 - November 22
OVERVIEW
The online survey let CCNY community members provide input on the project at their convenience. The survey was shared through several official outreach channels including the CCNY webpage about the campus plan project. To ensure the responses were from the current students, faculty, and staff the survey respondents were required to sign in using their CCNY credentials before accessing the survey.
98 survey responses
What We Heard
Through a series of prompts and questions, participants expressed their aspirations and vision for an enhanced campus environment that better supports their needs and goals.
ABOUT THE STAKEHOLDER
• What is your relationship to CCNY?
• How do you commute to the campus?
• How long is your commute to campus?
• Where do you first enter the campus?
• Where do you live?
WORK AND LEARNING SPACES
• Where on the campus are you working/studying?
• Desired quality of work/study space.
• The experience of the libraries.
SOCIAL SPACES
• Frequency of use of the social spaces.
• Desired recreational/social spaces on campus.
• Socializing hotspots on campus.
OUTDOOR AND OPEN SPACES
• Frequency of use of the outdoor spaces.
• Use of outdoor spaces on campus.
• Improvements for outdoor spaces on campus.
FACILITIES AND SERVICES
• Use of existing facilities and services.
• Desired improvements in the facility and services offerings.
MOVEMENT AND SECURITY
• Ease of movement around campus both indoor and outdoor.
• Safety and security throughout campus.
• Desired improvements for easier movement around campus.
OVERALL VISION
• Big picture visions and aspirations for a new and improved campus.
TOPIC 1: ABOUT THE STAKEHOLDER
This topic gathered information about the respondents, including their commute, which entrances of campus they use, and their relationship to CCNY (e.g. engineering student, arts faculty, facilities manager, etc.).
• Most participants enter Campus via the West side at 135th Street and at 138th Street, as well as on the north end at Convent Ave. This corresponds with the location of the surrounding subway stations (137 St – City College Station and 145 St Station). The majority commutes (over 60%) via the subway. The south side of campus below 134th street was utilized by less than 1% of participants.
• Commuters come from all New York boroughs, Jersey City and Westchester County. The highest concentrations of students commute to campus from the lower Bronx and Queens.
Where do you first enter CCNY?
Mode of Commute
• While staff/admin were the majority of the online survey participants, and more students participated in the Open House, the same trends were seen across both platforms.
Open House Open
TOPIC 2: WORK AND LEARNING SPACES
Participants shared about where they work or study and what is important to them in those spaces. The team focused in on library experiences, asking community members to rate their experiences across four categories— technology, aesthetics, comfort, and accessibility.
Findings and direct feedback from participants showed there was not enough adequate work/study space. Data revealed most spaces used to work/study overlapped with social spaces. The different elements of library experience participants felt neutral about. The condition of Libraries and Classrooms was a prime concern. Lack of privacy was also a recurring theme.
• The qualities of the work/study spaces are more important than the proximity to other places on campus.
TOPIC 3: SOCIAL SPACES
The desired quality in order of importance to participants from both the survey and the open house event:
25% Comfortable
21% Quiet/ Easy to Focus
20% Tech/ Wi-Fi/ Connectivity
10% Collaborative
10% Near Food/ Amenities
7% Near Offices/ Classrooms
3% Near Social Spaces
Community members were asked where they socialize on campus, how often they use different social spaces, and what they would like to see more of in those spaces.
People are rarely utilizing the spaces dedicated to “social activities” (e.g. categories defined by Arts and Culture, Dining, Fitness, Lounge, Recreation, and Wellness.) There is a lack of space where people can go on campus to take a moment to lounge, meet up, or hang out. This data highlights trends found in ‘Work and Learning Space’ that there is not enough dedicated space on campus for people to be in-between classes/work.
• The average response to how often participants USED the social spaces was “Never” or “Few Times” .
• Dining spaces were used the most often, but only 4% said that they utilized them “Daily/Every time on Campus”.
• Contrasted with the question “how often do you NEED the types of spaces” the two spaces that people expressed needing the most were “Dining Hall/Café” and “Lounge”.
• ‘Skills & Training Classes’ activities on campus was the most requested, followed by Arts & Culture Presentation and Outdoor Activities.
Where on campus do you socialize?
The project team used a campus map to see current usage of different outdoor and open spaces on campus, and how the space is being used by the community. There was also an open-ended question which asked for suggestions for improvement of these spaces.
• Outdoor spaces are most used for work/study, socializing/relaxing, and events on a weekly basis.
• Ratings of outdoor spaces show that the existing spaces are not comfortable, but the location and convenience was rated well.
• Participants almost never use the space for fitness/exercising.
• The outdoor and open spaces most utilized were spaces in front of the NAC, and courtyard in front of Compton Goethals and Harris Wingate by 78% reporting that is what they used the most.
• South Campus open spaces were only used by 2% of participants. 95% of the participants using south campus identified themselves as staff.
How would you improve Open Space?
More seating and shade
Better Wi-Fi/Outlets to work outside
More dining options such as food trucks and stands
Make Convent Ave more Pedestrian friendly
More events and activities outside in a large open space, like a park or plaza
Have a dedicated garden/arts park
Have a field/track/court for sports and fitness
TOPIC 5: FACILITIES AND SERVICES
This topic explored the day-to-day usage of existing CCNY facilities and services and participants voted on what would make them use facilities and services more regularly.
• Respondents are only using dining/food services on a more frequent basis
• Participants felt that if they knew the services were offered and the facilities were in better condition that they would utilize different facilities and services more.
• Proximity to other activities/classrooms/office was not a strong factor as to why people were not utilizing services.
• Not knowing where the services are located and that certain facilities/services existed were almost the same response.
TOPIC 6: MOVEMENT AND SECURITY
The team focused on getting around campus, the ease of travel on campus and how secure people felt on campus. Participants were asked to leave suggestions on what would make getting around CCNY easier.
• People feel safe and secure on campus, both indoors and outdoors.
• It is easier to get around outdoor areas of campus vs. indoor areas of campus.
73%said
What would make it easier to get around campus?
Working escalators and elevators Better maps, wayfinding, and signage around campus Frequent
TOPIC 7: OVERALL VISION
This was a chance for community members to express their big ideas for CCNY, pertaining to any subject or experience. At the Open House event, the team received six large poster boards jam-packed with ideas, giving an in-depth view of participants’ ideas, concerns, and what they love about the campus.
Next Steps
• The planning team will use the information gathered to guide the planning process for spaces and programming that best fits the needs and desires of the CCNY community.
• The results of this engagement data will be shared with the project steering committee, who will give additional input on how to use this information moving forward.
• Additional opportunities for engagement will be shared publicly through CCNY’s outreach channels, with the goal of engaging as many stakeholders as possible.
The Campus Plan is being developed over 9 months and will be completed by Summer 2025.
Phase 1: Information Gathering
Summer - Fall 2024
Phase 2: Vision & Priorities
Fall 2024
Phase 3: Options & Alternatives
Winter 2025
Phase 4: CCNY Campus Plan
Spring 2025
For additional information visit www.ccny.cuny.edu/campus-plan. The webpage is regularly updated throughout the project so the CCNY community can participate in all engagement activities.