Student Design Projects

Omar Cantu

Rehabilitation for People and Places; Dallas High School: A Case Study

The main focus of Omar's project was how to balance historic preservation and healthcare design issues. In adapting historic buildings, the key is to create a smooth transition between the new, the old, and the surrounding context. In healthcare, designers should strive to provide healing environments that achieve stress reduction through positive distraction, such as views of nature and social interaction. The project vehicle was the former Dallas High School built in 1907 in downtown Dallas. The mission of the project was to reuse the former school building as a 60,000 square foot rehabilitation center that provides ample space for therapy, a simplified circulation pattern and incorporated view of nature.

Graduated with a Masters of Architecture from Texas A&M in 2006