Our Location As teachers of ecological design, we’re sensitive to place. When Walt Cudnohufsky had the bold idea to establish his own graduate program in landscape design and planning in 1972, many wanted to return to the land, to live in the woods. Our first studio and classroom were in a barn and sugarhouse on Delabarre Avenue in Conway.
Times, people, and climates change. As the school developed and evolved, we realized that the priorities of the planet, its local and global communities, and of our prospective students had shifted. The search for sustainable balance was leading to more urban environments, and students drawn to Conway’s focus on environmentally sustainable design challenged the school to look at its own carbon footprint, which required students to have cars to get to campus. The school’s curriculum additionally integrates environmental justice and urban ecology. These changes led us to move into a more urban environment, beginning with a leased space in a converted mill in the city of Easthampton. After three years it was clear that moving into a location with easy access to public transportation, amenities, and housing was the right decision for our program, and the move marked a new era for the Conway School.
In 2018, we embraced an opportunity to own a campus for the long term that combines the rich environmental surroundings so valuable for teaching at the Conway campus with the energy, accessibility, and visibility of a more populated location. We parlayed our experience in placebased land management to design, build, and own a school that meets our needs. This optimal location is the historic Coach House in the Village Hill neighborhood of Northampton, Massachusetts. In the three years since the move we have been able to observe and create a living landscape laboratory outside our doors, live in alignment with our institutional mission and goals, and better meet our students’ logistic, educational, and ethical needs.
Top: Deerfield Road facility in Conway Bottom: Pleasant Street mill studio in Easthampton.
The Coach House The Conway School occupies the first floor of a mixed-use building. Students have 24/7 access to the secure 4,500-square-foot facility. The facility includes a studio with student desks and storage space, restrooms, faculty office, staff offices, two conference rooms, a full kitchen with dining area, print room, utility room, and classroom/ presentation space with library. Students have access to full color printers and copiers, largeformat printers and scanners, lightboxes, cutting surfaces, student mailboxes, a range of drafting supplies, and a collection of over 4,500 library books. The students additionally have access to an outdoor seating area and bicycle rack. Parking is free and on-street. There is a bicycle path and pedal-assist bikeshare facility nearby, along with a public transit bus stop. Students can easily walk to a riverside trail network, community gardens, and the Smith College Botanic Gardens.
10 The Conway School Graduate Program in Sustainable Landscape Planning + Design
