Narissa
Taylor
Narissa Taylor is an easygoing and kind individual who developed a passion for both art and science at an early age. Interior design was the perfect career choice as it combines both her scientific and creative passions.
During her time at KPU, Narissa developed an interest in institutional, workplace, and retail design. She values environmental sustainability, social sustainability and human-centered design. She believes design is a powerful, experiential tool that can enhance the quality of people’s lives and help the world work towards a greener future.
Kalino Secondary School
Kalino Secondary is an adaptive reuse building transformed into a Vancouver high school. This school is designed to deviate from the rigidity of traditional institutional models, and instead adopt a flexible and student-centered approach.
Kalino Secondary is inspired by British Columbia’s recently updated public school curriculum, where personalized and adaptive learning is at the center of their education model. However, British Columbia’s implementation of this new curriculum conflicted with existing school spaces that are still physically rigid and traditional—flexible learning cannot happen in a structured environment.
To encourage student personalization and flexibility, Kalino Secondary features learning rooms that can be reconfigured with both the furniture and moveable partitions. This way, students and staff can set up the room according to their needs for the day. There are also a variety of different collaboration, focus and relaxation zones for students to choose where to work.
Kalino Secondary focuses on the concept of journey, understanding that education isn’t about getting from point A to point B. The process of getting there is equally as important and is reflect in our circulation. There are various different stops along the circulation path where students can collaborate or socialize with their peers. Our character concept is derived from nature because research shows a connection to nature increases productivity and decreases stress in students. At Kalino Secondary, it is important to us that our students are receiving proper education in an environment that supports their success.
