Letter from the AAJ Communications Chair

Our second quarter AAJ Journal features 3 articles:

• Part 1 of a 3 Part series focusing on Design/Build in the Justice Market. Part 1 discusses Architect's experiences with the Design/Build process. Article content is based on feedback received in response to the recent survey conducted by the AAJ Communication Committee.
• An article highlighting strategies for utilizing technology to manage courtroom lighting and acoustics.
• A report on the Center for Court Innovation's recent "Community Justice 2012: The International Conference of Community Courts"

Richard Wener's much anticipated book entitled "The Environmental Psychology of Prisons and Jails: Creating Humane Spaces in Secure Settings" due out this month. Refer to "In the News" on how to pre-order your copy today.

I welcome your ideas and input. Please contact me with your suggestions for future article topics and newsletter content. Be sure to visit us on Facebook, Linked-In, and AIA KnowledgeNet.

April Pottorff, AIA
2012 Communications Committee Chair
AIA Academy of Architecture for Justice

Features

"Why All the Distress? The Architect in a Design-Build World"
by Larry Hartman, AIA, HDR Architecture

One of the more popular sessions at the 2011 AAJ conference in Los Angeles was "Design/Build in Corrections Environments: Good, Bad, or Indifferent". The standing room only crowd was very engaged in the topic even though design-build has been in our industry for several years. Thus, the AAJ Communications Committee is embarking on a series of design-build articles to provide a broad perspective and to further the conversation. This article preparation started with a May 2012 on-line survey response from 41 AAJ members. Read More.

Hearing the Hearing
by Edward L. Logsdon, Associate Principal, D. L. Adams Associates, Inc.

Courtrooms, hearing rooms, jury deliberation rooms, etc., are often designed with the most recent technological advances in equipment and software to provide clear, secure, and efficient transfer of information. Technology systems use both aural and visual means to make this happen, but they cannot do that without considering other design elements. This short article identifies what else should be considered when designing the rooms to better utilize the technology. Read More.

Community Justice Conference
by Frank Greene, FAIA

The recent conference Community Justice 2012: The International Conference of Community Courts sponsored by the Center for Court Innovation drew over 300 participants from seven countries and 75 cities to Washington DC in February. Read More.

In the News

2012 AAJ Conference – Save the Date
AAJ's annual conference is in Toronto, ON Canada on 10 – 12 October 2012. Conference details and information will be posted on the AAJ Web-site.

"The Environmental Psychology of Prisons and Jails"
Richard Wener's much anticipated book entitled "The Environmental Psychology of Prisons and Jails: Creating Humane Spaces in Secure Settings" is due out this month. Cambridge University Press and as Amazon are now accepting pre-orders. Cambridge University Press is offering a 20% discount through 12/01/12. See flyer for details.

Visit the AAJ home page on AIA KnowledgeNet website. In addition be sure to join the AAJ Linked-In and Facebook groups.

To reference archived issues of the AAJ Journal, refer to the links below:
March 2012 | January 2012 | November 2011 | September 2011 | May 2011 | February 2011 | View the complete archive.

The AAJ Communications Committee welcomes your ideas and input. Contact April Pottorff, AIA at april@riccigreene.com with your suggestions for future articles, announcements, and journal content.