Conway School of Landscape Design-Link to home map of Conway, MA Graduate Program in Sustainable Landscape Planning and Design
[The students] have clearly made an extraordinary effort and worked long hours to deliver a professional, well-crafted set of route maps, preliminary design drawings, and related materials. Their work exceeded our expectations in terms of quality, completeness and timeliness. The entire Connecticut Riverwalk and Bikeway Task Force was impressed with the excellent presentations [the students] made. [They] showed a sincere interest in seeing this project implemented, and have gone to extra lengths including making a fine presentation this week to Springfield's Mayor and his department heads. In conclusion, we couldn't have asked for a better student design team — and we would strongly recommend them for any future landscape design position or project they may pursue. — Christopher Curtis, Principal Planner, Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, West Springfield, MA 

Winter Term Projects

Design Practice II 

In the winter term, the projects increase in scope and complexity and are undertaken by teams of students for public and nonprofit clients. Typically:

  • The projects are for a public agency or non-profit organization;
  • The project scope necessitates study of natural systems within which the clients’ requests must be accommodated or revised;
  • Students work in teams of two or three;
  • The information for the study may be derived from geographic information systems (GIS) and presented as computer graphics; and

Students produce a written report that summarizes the design and planning process and recommendations, and accompanying maps, charts, and other illustrations.

See several examples of student reports on our Issuu bookshelf. You'll be able to review them in detail there.

Students are assigned to teams based on their individual goals, and the specific needs of the project. Team members learn to exercise ethical leadership, collaboration, and management skills. Weekly presentations at the school are often rehearsals for team presentations to boards of directors, planning boards, conservation commissions, or public hearings.

Following a formal presentation to critics at the school, the entire project is summarized in a substantial report. A CD-ROM of the material is also prepared for the client.

Community projects stretch the capabilities of students, who must work with their clients even as they learn the basics of town and conservation planning. Often projects are complicated by diverse client interests or opinions on land-use options. The courses and guest speakers integrate training in diverse fields while introducing students to career options. Recent winter term projects include:

  • Open space and recreation plans for Ashland, Southborough, Great Barrington, and Worthington, Massachusetts, and North Stonington, Connecticut.
  • Cataloguing and guidelines for Coastal Zone management for Gloucester, Massachusetts.
  • An environmental index for Marbletown, New York.