Dec. 19, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by Interstate Office Products.

Step into the newly renovated Thompson Center at South Dakota State University, and it doesn’t feel as much like other academic buildings located throughout the campus.

That’s by design. Considered the state’s most comprehensive counseling education center, the space serves students and faculty, as well as potential patients coming to them for care.

“They wanted a warm, inviting feel, something a little less like a typical university building because it is a space for therapy that could involve bringing people in for a counseling session, including families,” said Teena Hogan, account manager and interior designer with Interstate Office Products, who worked on the project with her colleague Erica Whalen, also an interior designer.

“Throughout the space, you’ll see some of the colors they chose are different from the rest of campus. It creates a relaxing feeling in some of the spaces.”

Built in 1960, the building originally served as the Methodist Student Center, where it once held church services. It was converted from a tutoring center at SDSU before becoming the learning and training facility for counseling and human resources development programs, which just moved into the renovated space this fall.

“The demand for this project really comes from trying to educate more mental health professionals,” said Abby Whitelock, interior designer for SDSU facilities and services. “The former space for this project was on the west edge of campus, so this brings them more internal, with better access to parking, and there’s a hope to someday open this up to the community to have counseling available.”

For now, students train in mock counseling sessions in seven dedicated rooms, including several geared to families and small groups.

IOP helped SDSU select various types of soft seating for patients and a separate chair for counselors, with accent pillows to soften them and small occasional tables.

“It’s always nice to give patients a choice of seating, especially with multiple people in the room; for example, if you have a child that wants to sit beside a parent or would rather be apart, there are options for both,” Whalen said. “We envisioned the counselor’s chair as something more than a task chair, a full chair with a fun fabric that sits upright.”

In a group counseling room, “we did more modular tables pushed together to give flexibility for meetings of various sizes,” Hogan said.

Throughout the building, Whitelock “really wanted to hone into the health care vibe,” she said. “I wanted a calming space, which is really trending in the industry, including for neurodivergent individuals and using trauma-informed design, so we could get these students acquainted with these types of environments.”

 A main-level active-learning classroom includes modular furniture to promote collaboration and accommodate speakers and guests.

“The tables and chairs are easily able to be moved around, and there’s an area with a taller pub-height table and stools for collaboration in a small group,” Hogan said. “We kept it a very movable and flexible space.”

Within the space, “we were able to use a new chair by Steelcase, the Tenor, which is a minty blue color and a fun way to bring in the color palette from other spaces,” Whalen said. “The new chair includes a backpack hook on the back for extra convenience.”

The seat also allows students to sit three ways based on how it’s formed.

“So it gives flexibility as students are learning in various situations or collaborating with each other and fits a range of students and different postures,” Hogan said.

There’s even a dedicated space for play therapy in the building.

“We worked with Abby do some fun cutouts of jackrabbits on kid-sized chairs to introduce the logo in a subtle way,” Hogan said. “It’s a nice example of how we’re able to customize.”

There’s also shelving for books and toys, a small kitchenette and a marker board installed low enough for kids to reach.

“They wanted all the storage to be open, so kids could gravitate toward what intrigues them, and nothing is up high. It all caters to kids,” Whalen said.

Children attending the on-campus Fishback Center for Early Childhood Education will be invited to use the space, Whitelock said.

“This is a first for our program, to be able to design a room around play therapy instead of retrofitting one for it, so we’re really excited about that,” she said. “I wanted to pull in some blue and yellow so the kiddos are walking into a more colorful space and don’t feel fearful.”

The building also includes shared space for graduate assistants, faculty offices with height-adjustable desks and a conference room designed for virtual meetings.

A student lounge includes bench-style seating “that will wear well,” Whalen said. “As a college student, I always appreciated those areas between classes where you could sit and pull out a computer to work, and there’s a TV so students can also just relax for a few moments if needed.”

The Steelcase products used throughout were chosen for their durability, Whitelock said.

“They’re a little more of an investment, but it’s because of the quality,” she said. “We use their tables in most of our classrooms, including our active classrooms where furniture is moved a lot, and they perform really well. And if we ever have issues, they’re quick to fix, which is nice because the service is very good.”

Working with IOP on the project “was a good experience, as it always is,” she continued.

“I’m pretty busy and really needed to get the design done and move on to finishes and finalizing, and they were able to do that in a very short amount of time. They’ve been in the industry a long time, and I really trust their eye for design. Plus, I knew IOP and Steelcase had a lot of experience supporting health care, office and higher education facilities and would be the right choice to do the whole project and deliver.”

Whalen and Hogan are SDSU alumni, giving their work on the Thompson Center added significance.

“It’s always fun to see the progress they’re making on campus and the different things they’re doing,” Hogan said. “I enjoy working on projects up there.”

Whalen agreed.

“I’m excited to drive through campus someday and point it out to my family and say, ‘I got to work on that,’” she said. “I love getting to be part of shaping SDSU into what it is for current and future Jackrabbits.”

IOP and SDSU worked together well to fulfill the project in phased orders to meet timelines and start the school year, Whitelock added.

“Our students using the counseling spaces are really excited to have the bigger space with better lighting, seating and technology. They look forward to bringing people into the space,” she said. “And the donors who supported this are very, very happy. It’s a donor-funded project for the university, and they were very excited by how it turned out. We’ve had a lot of positive feedback and are so grateful to have this building dedicated to counseling and human development.”

To learn more about how Interstate Office Products can support your next projects, visit i-o-p.com.