On Saturday, Children's Institute, Inc. (CII), a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping children and families in Los Angeles's most challenged communities, teamed up with Frank Gehry to unveil the design of the future Children's Institute Watts Campus.
Gehry was joined by a host of local political leaders, officials, and community organizations who have thrown their support behind the project. Gehry Partners, LLP, is headquartered in Los Angeles, and the architect is donating his design services to CII.
Once completed, the new two-acre Watts Campus will enable CII to expand its services to 5,000 children and families in the area. The campus will include rooms for individual and group counseling, community meeting space, indoor and outdoor areas for afterschool activities, early childhood education and childcare, areas dedicated to youth development programs such as art and computer training, as well as expanded space for family support services and classes.
Headquartered near downtown Los Angeles, CII provides services to more than 24,000 children and families a year across Los Angeles County. The organization has provided social services from leased facilities in Watts for the past eight years, and has been active in the area for more than a decade.
The $35 million Watts Campus capital project is the cornerstone of a larger campaign—CII's Building on Success comprehensive fundraising campaign—which will also raise funds for operations and other needs.
Related Stories
School Construction | Jun 20, 2022
A charter high school breaks ground in L.A.’s Koreatown
A new charter school has broken ground in Los Angeles’ Koreatown neighborhood.
K-12 Schools | May 16, 2022
Private faculty offices are becoming a thing of the past at all levels of education
Perkins & Will’s recent design projects are using the area to encourage collaboration.
K-12 Schools | May 16, 2022
A Quaker high school in Maryland is the first in the U.S. to get WELL Gold certification
Designed by Stantec, a Quaker high school is the first in the US to receive WELL Gold certification, which recognizes a commitment to occupants’ health and well-being.
Sponsored | BD+C University Course | May 10, 2022
Designing smarter places of learning
This course explains the how structural steel building systems are suited to construction of education facilities.
Sponsored | BD+C University Course | May 3, 2022
For glass openings, how big is too big?
Advances in glazing materials and glass building systems offer a seemingly unlimited horizon for not only glass performance, but also for the size and extent of these light, transparent forms. Both for enclosures and for indoor environments, novel products and assemblies allow for more glass and less opaque structure—often in places that previously limited their use.
Education Facilities | May 2, 2022
Texas School for the Deaf campus gateway enhances sense of belonging for deaf community
The recently completed Texas School for the Deaf Administration and Welcome Center and Early Learning Center, at the state’s oldest continuously operating public school, was designed to foster a sense of belonging for the deaf community.
Education Facilities | Apr 28, 2022
ProConnect Education (K-12 to University) comes to Scottsdale, AZ, Dec 4-6
ProConnect Education 2022 will attract building product specifiers and manufacturers to the Andaz Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., in December.
Multifamily Housing | Apr 26, 2022
Investment firm Blackstone makes $13 billion acquisition in student-housing sector
Blackstone Inc., a New York-based investment firm, has agreed to buy student-housing owner American Campus Communities Inc.
Architects | Apr 22, 2022
Top 10 green building projects for 2022
The American Institute of Architects' Committee on the Environment (COTE) has announced its COTE Top Ten Awards for significant achievements in advancing climate action.
University Buildings | Apr 18, 2022
SmithGroup to design new Univ. of Colorado Denver engineering, design, computing building
The University of Colorado Denver selected SmithGroup to design a new engineering, design, and computing building that will serve as anchor of new downtown innovation district.