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EDRA CORE - 2025

EDRA CORE - Certificate of Research Excellence 2024

2025 EDRA CORE: CERTIFICATE OF RESEARCH EXCELLENCE

The Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) is pleased to announce the Certificate of Research Excellence (CORE) recipients for 2025. CORE recognizes rigorous and impactful practice-based research that sparks innovation and promotes best practices in environmental design. The credibility of academic research is typically judged based on well-established protocols and peer-review processes, but what constitutes research quality in the context of the practice of environmental design? The tools used to assess academic research do not easily translate to practice-based research – a challenge for researchers and practitioners alike. In response, EDRA developed CORE to assess the value of research beyond rigor alone.

EDRA CORE’s unique evaluation framework identifies practice-based environmental design research that is not only rigorous but also meets industry challenges, pushes the boundaries of practice, recognizes the importance of research in practice, and builds on EDRA’s tradition of inquiry, reflection, and collaboration.

2025 EDRA CORE REVIEWERS

  • Renae Rich, MS Occupant Evaluation Manager, HGA
  • Jake Culbertson, PhD Design Anthropologist & Senior Associate, HGA
  • Rachael Shields, MA, PhD Student in Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Nick Watkins, PhD Director, Workplace Strategy, Ware Malcomb
  • Sharmin Kader, PhD, Associate AIA Assistant Professor of Interior Design Ball State University
  • Felix Kabo, PhD, MArch, MS Research Director CannonDesign
  • Dongying Li, PhD, MLA Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture & Urban Planning, Texas A&M University

2025 EDRA CORE RECIPIENTS

The following practice-based design research projects met the CORE criteria. They were selected for recognition based on a review by a cross-disciplinary panel of reviewers consisting of academic researchers, practice-based researchers, designers, and industry thought leaders. The CORE recipients were been recognized at EDRA56 in Halifax, May 27th – 30th, 2025.

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2024 EDRA CORE RECIPIENTS

The following practice-based design research projects met the CORE criteria. They were selected for recognition based on a review by a cross-disciplinary panel of reviewers consisting of academic researchers, practice-based researchers, designers, and industry thought leaders. The CORE recipients were announced at the EDRA55 Portland, June 19th – 22nd, 2024.

Full Circle: Post Occupancy Evaluation of a Consolidated Transplant Clinic on Patient Experience and Staff Efficiencies
Flad Architects and UW Health
Study team: Kara Freihoefer, Elizabeth Strutz, Preeti Dalvie, Erin Frush, Laura Serebin, Sinh Dinh, Karron Conger

Designing Cancer Infusion Centers: Results from a Pre- and Post-Occupancy Evaluation
HGA and St. Elizabeth Healthcare
Study team: Mahshid Jalalian, Nancy Doyle, Lou Ann Bunker-Hellmich, Abbie Ochsner, Kara Freihoefer

Optimizing Hospital Arrival Experiences: An Integrated Research Protocol for Post-Occupancy Evaluation
GBBN and University of Kansas
Study team: Shan Jiang, Hui Cai, Monalipa Dash, Kirsten Miller, Zahra Daneshvar, Jackson Feinknopf

Blueprint for Mitigating Nurse Burnout: A Social Listening Perspective
HKS, Center for Advanced Design Research and Evaluation (CADRE), and Miller Knoll
Study team: Rutali Joshi, Deborah Wingler, Edward Hunt, Michelle Ossmann

Universal Platform for Critical Access Hospitals: Impact on Operations
HGA and Centracare
Study team: Terri Zborowsky, Erin LaBrec, Shawn Sullivan, Centracare

2024 CORE CERTIFICATIONS

Addressing a Multi-Billion Dollar Challenge: Advancing Knowledge of How High-Quality School Environments Can Positively Affect Educational Outcomes
Perkins Eastman, Drexel University, Invontics
Study team: Emily Chmielewski, Heather Jauregui, Sean O'Donnell, Karen Gioconda, Bruce Levine, Lance Kruse

The Hybrid Report: Designing for the New Hybrid Work Era
Corgan
Study team: Melissa Hoelting, Mahdi Afkhamiaghda, Samantha Flores, Emily Strain

Architecture Matters: Exploring Audiences’ Holistic Theatrical Experience through Social Media Reviews
GBBN
Study team: Shan Jiang, Marcene Kinney, Christopher Yost, Julia Clements

"Getting It Right:" a Network-Based Approach to Site Selection for Collaboration
CannonDesign
Study team: Felix Kabo

Ameliorating Cold Stress: Examining the Effects of a Severe Winter Storm on Residents of Subsidized Housing Neighborhoods and Modeling a Design Intervention
Texas A&M
Study team: Dongying Li, Xiaoyu Li, Yue Zhang, Robert Brown

Free Address, Work from Anywhere, and Everything in between: A Post-Occupancy Evaluation of an Office Offering Work Flexibility through Design and Policy
Perkins Eastman
Study team: Hanna Negami, Widya Ramadhani, Rebecca Milne, Heather Jauregui, Jeff Young, Jennifer Askey, Connor Glass, Jennica Deely

Regreening Suburbia: An Analysis of Urban Greening Approaches in U.S. Sprawl Retrofitting Projects
University of British Columbia
Study team: Keunhyun Park

Quiet Carrels and Collaborative Hubs: Campus Library As Third Place
University of Florida and University of San Carlos - Talamban Campus
Study team: Margaret Portillo, Jason Meneely, Laura Spears, Adrian Perez Del Monte

Cognitive Commons: Connecting a Library’s Evolution and Student Achievement
Multi Studio and Free State High School
Study team: Michael Ralph, Brittany Coudriet, Marisa Hegeman

Net Positive Education™: Measuring the Impact of Two-High Performance Schools
Perkins Eastman
Study team: Widya Ramadhani, Emily Chmielewski, Heather Jauregui, Sean O'Donnell

KPI-Driven Design Tool to Inform Post-Pandemic Workplace Design
Arcadis
Study team: Helia Taheri, Shreya Somani, Amy Keller Frye, Kyujin (Q) Song

A Firmwide Exploratory Mixed Methods Research on Post-Occupancy Evaluation in Architecture Practice
Arcadis
Study team: Helia Taheri, John Naranjo, Rachel Bruce, Wei Xia

Past CORE Certification Recipients