Cleveland, Ohio –October 6, 2026– Learning By Design has published the annual Fall 2026 Architecture and Interior Design Awards of Excellence. The October 2026 edition features an assortment of exemplary PK-12 and post-secondary campus environments. These recently or soon to activated projects include newly constructed entire buildings and or renovated early childhood, elementary school, middle school, high school, specialized education, higher education, and other space types. In total seventy-five entries were judged based on six criteria: Design Challenges and Innovation; Sustainability and Social Impact; Interior Architecture/Design; Next Generation Learning; Functional Design/Effective space Planning; and Community Needs.
A distinguished panel of five architects and education facility professionals reviewed and debated the merits of all submissions. Eight of the highest scoring submittals won top awards. These well-designed projects stood out for their novel design thinking, transparency, connectivity, safety, sustainability, great interiors, and sophistication.
The jury deliberation produced fourteen top ranked award winners.
- Five Grand Prize Awards:
- Six Citation of Excellence Awards, with noted awards for Community Investment, Interior Design, and Mass Timber.
- Three Honor Awards were granted; with noted awards for Climate Action, Adaptive Reuse, and Historic Preservation..
The five GRAND PRIZE AWARD winners are:
SHP (Cincinnati, OH)
for the Peck Expeditionary Learning School (Greensboro, NC)
– Grand Prize - Over 100,000 sq. ft.
NAC Architecture & Koning Eizenberg Architecture (Seattle, WA)
for the
Malibu High School (Malibu, CA)
– Grand Prize – Under 100,000 sq. ft.
EwingCole (Philadelphia, PA)
for the Richard A. Balderston OPC ’69 Lower School (Philadelphia, PA)
- Grand Prize – Under 100,000 sq. ft.
RDG Planning & Design (Omaha, NE)
for the Mesa County Early Childhood Center at Clifton Campus (Clifton, CO)
– Grand Prize – Under 100,000 sq. ft.
Architectural Nexus (Sacramento, CA)
for the Ursula Meyer Library & Community Center (Stockton, CA)
– Grand Prize – Under 100,000 sq. ft.
The six CITATIONS OF EXCELLENCE Award winners are:
Studio G Architects (Jamaica Plain, MA)
for the Franklin Cummings Tech (Boston, MA)
- Citation of Excellence - Community Investment
SCHRADERGROUP Studio (Philadelphia, PA)
for the Keith Valley Middle School (Hatboro, PA)
- Citation of Excellence - Over 100,000 sq. ft.
TMP Architecture, Inc. (Bloomfield Hills, MI)
for the East China Innovation Center (East China, MI)
- Citation of Excellence - Interior Design
TowerPinkster + Fielding International (Kalamazoo, MI)
for the Portage Public Schools Central Elementary (Portage, MI)
- Citation of Excellence - Under 100,000 sq. ft.
DLR Group (Henderson, NV)
for the Kalamazoo Regional Educational Service Agency Career Connect Campus (Kalamazoo, MI)
- Citation of Excellence - Mass Timber
DLA Architects, Ltd. (Itasca, IL)
for the Debbie Sykora Early Childhood Center Addition (Bolingbrook, IL)
- Citation of Excellence - Under 100,000 sq. ft.
The three HONOR AWARD recipients are:
PARTNERS in Architecture, PLC (Mount Clemens, MI)
for the Chatterton Middle School (Warren, MI)
- Honor Award - Adaptive Reuse
KSS Architects (Princeton, NJ)
for the AMY at James Martin (Philadelphia, PA)
- Honor Award - Climate Action
Schenkel Shultz (Orlando, FL)
for the Booker High School Visual Performing Arts Theatre Renovation (Sarasota, FL)
- Honor Award - Historic Preservation
Fall 2026 Learning By Design Jury Members
Sylvia Fitzwater, ALEP, RID,
LEED AP BD+C
Principal | Director of Interiors
Arcadis, Inc.
Houston, TX
Harriet Grindel
Senior Project Mngr.
Multistudio
Kansas City, MO
Ann Vacek, AIA, WELL AP, ALEP
Senior Associate
NAC
Seattle, WA
Paul Klee, AIA, NCARB, ALEP, LEED AP
FGM Architects
Darnestown, MD
Monique Taylor, IIDA, NCIDQ, LEED AP, ID+C, LFA, WELL AP
Senior Interior Designer, Sustainability Coordinator
Legat Architects
Chicago, IL
To review the Fall 2026 Architecture and Interior Design Awards of Excellence visit the digital edition awards compendium found in the October 2026 edition of Learning By Design.