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Jake Powell teaches high school students

Whitehorse High School Courtyard Design Charrette

Project Lead: Jake Powell

Fast Facts


  • Year: 2019
  • Client: Kristen Bushnell 
  • Outcomes: 3-Day design charrette, high school student introduction to design
  • Status: Complete
  • Project Size: 0.05 acres
  • Project Scale: Site
  • Impacts: The project introduced the design process to 40 high school students through a hands on, place based experience. The ideas are being proposed to the school district in hopes that a full, detailed design can be created and implemented by students.

Project Summary 

LAEP Extension teamed up with Design Build Bluff and professional landscape architect David Garce to assist Whitehorse High School students re-imagine the courtyard of their school. This effort not only gave the school an exciting set of ideas for the space, but also introduced these students to a career in design.

Project Description

Whitehorse High School is located in Montezuma Creek, Utah, a small community located within the Navajo nation. At the center of the high school is an outdoor courtyard that represents a place students wish to improve and reclaim. LAEP Extension worked with the local non-profit Design Build Bluff and landscape architect David Garce to guide the students through a 3-day design charrette focused on generating new ideas for the courtyard. This effort was the starting point in a process we hope will result in subsequent design charrettes with students at the high school, refined designs for the courtyard, and an opportunity for students to build and install their work in the future.

This effort also allowed the students to learn about the field of landscape architecture, architecture, engineering, and construction through interacting with LAEP Extension staff and professionals.