Ribbon Cutting Ceremony:
Dr. Persis C. Rickes and Monica C. Meyerhoff attended a ribbon cutting ceremony at Tunxis Community College in Connecticut on 21 February. This was the formal dedication and opening of a building ten years in the making. Working closely with Tunxis and the Connecticut Community College System, Rickes Associates prepared and refined the space program for a new, 94,000 gsf state-of-the-art classroom, laboratory, and library building. The building was designed by DuBose Associates of Hartford, Connecticut. Rickes Associates extends its congratulation to the Tunxis community!

Make Way for Millennials:

On 30 January, Dr. Rickes was the invited speaker at the Boston Society of Architects (BSA) on Millennials and the impact they are having on institutions of higher education. This cohort, born after 1982, brings with it a whole host of issues ranging from an increased demand for student services to a need for group work space. And they frequently arrive on campus with hovering helicopter parents!

Dr. Garcia Inauguration:

Dr. Karen E. Hinton has been invited to attend the inauguration of Dr. Mildred Garcia as the seventh president of California State University – Dominguez Hills on 2 May. Dr. Garcia, the former president of Berkeley College, will become the first Latina president in the California State University system, and was recently named one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics of 2007 by Hispanic Business.

Generational Clash in the Workplace:
Dr. Rickes was part of a panel presentation at a meeting of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) on 6 March. The panel explored the work styles of Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials. How does a workplace accommodate their very different work and management approaches? What happens when Gen Xers want to work independently while Millennilas want to collaborate? And will all offices need a “Grand Puba” or Director of Celebrations, such as presaged by Ben & Jerry’s?

Milestones

RA recently completed its 200^th project since its founding in 1991. We also expanded the number of states we have worked in, adding Missouri, and bringing our total to 22 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, as well as Iceland and the United Arab Emirates. We look forward to continued growth in the coming year. 
 

Rickes Associates also brought to a close a three–year project with the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM). During this time, RA conducted an instructional utilization space analysis for the 24 State and Community Colleges in the Commonwealth. From this analysis, numbers and mixes of general classrooms were recommended and space needs for specialized instructional areas were suggested.

Pictured left to right: Kevin Duffy, Lori DeRosa, Karen Hinton, Persis Rickes, Jan Turner, Monica Meyerhoff, and Tom Flaherty.

Missing: Phyllis Roy and Norm Beauchemin.

A New Space

Leaving rental space behind – and in need of expanded space to accommodate growth – Rickes Associates purchased and renovated a building dedicated exclusively to the firm. Our main office is now located in Attleboro, Massachusetts, between Providence and Boston.

Welcome Aboard!

As Rickes Associates enters its 18^th year, we welcome aboard Mr. Normand P. Beauchemin. Norm is a graduate of Boston College School of Management and Harvard University with a Masters in Public Policy. He will serve as a Research Analyst.

Current Clients

Rickes Associates is working closely with Boston College on a space needs assessment for Devlin Hall, suggesting reorganization strategies to accommodate growth and change.

A master plan is underway at Wentworth Institute of Technology. In conjunction with Goody, Clancy and Associates of Boston, RA is analyzing instructional space needs at WIT. This includes an extensive on-line survey of faculty, coordinated by Mr. Norm Beauchemin and Ms. Jan Turner.

Recent Clients
RA is concluding a space program at SUNY Geneseo, which will help convert Bailey Hall to a new Social Science building. RA was engaged through Hamilton, Houston, Lownie Architects in Buffalo, New York to identify the space needs for the departments in the new building. In addition, an instructional utilization analysis was completed for the campus as a whole. Dr. Karen E. Hinton and Ms. Monica C. Meyerhoff have been working with the campus.

Also just completed by RA is a space program for the Olin Business School at Washington University. Ms. Lori K. DeRosa, MBA worked closely with the campus and Goody, Clancy and Associates of Boston on this fast-track project to provide a detailed space program.

RA recently supported Berkeley College of New York and New Jersey with their Middle States Commission on Higher Education reaccreditation self-study. Dr. Karen E. Hinton provided assistance to the College by facilitating committee meetings for the Shared Standards Working Group, helping identify and organize materials and documentation for the campus site visit, and by joining members of the Steering Committee to review and edit the self-study report.