Evaluation and Awards

This competition seeks bold design thinking that meets the needs of each specific park site, while bringing fresh design vision to what national parks can be. In each stage, the winning submissions will advance National Park Service goals of creating welcoming, healthy, and enduring public spaces.

Stage 1: Submission Criteria

Stage 1 submissions were evaluated according to the following criteria:

Point values were assigned to the above criteria to quantitatively evaluate each submission. The Jury/Advisory Committee also performed a qualitative evaluation of the overall creativity of the proposal thesis and syllabus. See detailed Stage 1 submission requirements.

Stage 2: Awards & Honors

Winners of this design competition have a unique opportunity to foster innovation and vision for the National Park System. While the National Park Service is under no obligation to implement the winning design proposals for specific park sites, these studio projects will be nationally celebrated as exemplary design solutions whose principles embody design excellence at both site and system levels.

Van Alen Institute and all the Designing the Parks partners will ensure broad public visibility for the competition, coinciding with the National Park Service's 100th-anniversary celebrations. Every school that responds to Stage 1 will contribute to the NPS portfolio of design strategies. Stage 2 finalists will work with National Park Service administrators and the Design Advisory Committee to explore their park sites, and will have opportunities to showcase their designs for park leadership, advocates, and the public.

The winning studio teams — whose schemes best exemplify the Park Service's design principles and most creatively address each park's specific needs — will be celebrated in fall 2012. Selected students from the studio teams will receive paid summer internship opportunities at national park sites.