| Formed concept at Annual SBSE
Summer Retreat |
Summer 1988 |
The Vital Signs concept was
initially framed in a series of discussions at this meeting in Harvard’s Pack Forest
retreat. SBSE members called for a mechanism that would bring “real building”
issues to the teaching of architecture while generating case study information. |
| Submitted Proposal for
initial VITAL SIGNS funding |
June 1992 |
Proposal (successful) to the Energy Foundation including our original project
plan and budget. The project began with Principal Investigator Cris Benton and Research Assistant Alison
Kwok as staff. This proposal served as a yardstick for measuring our progress in the two
dozen or so initially-proposed project activities. |
| Formed Technical Advisory Committee |
November 1992 |
Convened a committee of peer reviewers and met in San Francisco to test the
Vital Signs concept and review the project’s development plan. |
| Developed Resource Package
Topic Roster |
June 1993 |
Produced an annotated
ledger-size table of 27 potential Resource Package topics with a brief accounting of
methods, relevance, and resources. |
| First presentation of Vital
Signs to architecture faculty group |
July 1993 |
Presented Vital Signs to the
Summer Workshop of the Society of
Building Science Educators. Issued a packet describing the intentions, and initial
progress, of the Vital Signs Project. |
| Proposed Loaner Toolkit
concept to the National Science Foundation |
November 1993 |
Developed a proposal
(successful) to the NSF Instructional Laboratory Improvement Program for
“loaner” sets of field instruments to support Vital Signs methods. |
| Requested Proposals for
Resource Package Development |
March 1994 |
Mailed a RFP to over 160
professors of architecture in the United States and Canada offering funding in support of
the third-party school development of twelve additional Resource Packages. |
| Presented project to the
American Solar Energy Society Conference |
April 1994 |
Delivered paper to the
American Solar Energy Society describing the Vital Signs Project and progress to date.
Presented in San Jose. |
| Held Vital Signs Workshop for
architectural educators |
June 1994 |
A one-day session of the
Society of Building Science Educators Summer Retreat, held at the PG&E Energy center, focused on Vital Signs with an
emphasis on measurement technique. |
| Began Resource Package
development |
July 1994 |
Resource Package development
was started with a kick-off meeting for the twelve schools developing packages. |
| Presented Vital Signs to the
AIAS |
November 1994 |
Presented Vital Signs to the
annual conference of the American Institute of Architecture Students. AIAS in turn agreed
to co-sponsor the student case study competition. |
| Expanded Staff |
March 1995 |
Gail Brager joins
the Vital Signs staff as Co-Principal Investigator followed by Bill Burke as Project Manager. |
| Began Peer Review Program for
RP Drafts |
April 1995 |
Peer Review of Resource
Package drafts. Five peer reviewers were arranged for each Resource Package draft through
a call for participation coordinated by G. Z. Brown. |
| Submitted ASES Conference
Paper |
June 1995 |
Paper delivered to the
American Solar Energy Society describing the Vital Signs Project and progress to date.
Presented in Minneapolis. |
| Formed Blue Ribbon Advisory
Panel |
August 1995 |
This group of advisors
includes William McDonough, Susan Maxman, and Don Watson. |
| Inaugurated the Vital Signs
WWW Site |
August 1995 |
Posted the first pages at the
Vital Signs WWW site. This medium will play an important role in the Vital Signs project
for the dissemination of materials and as a vehicle for discussion. |
| Held Summer Session for
Architecture Faculty |
August 1995 |
Conducted a summer training
session attended by 44 architecture faculty, additional students and staff. The three-day
event was held at the Clark Kerr Campus at UC Berkeley and the PG&E Energy Center in San Francisco. |
| Requested Proposals for
Building Workup Development |
September 1995 |
Mailed RFP to over 220
professors of architecture in the United States and Canada seeking proposals for the
incorporation of the Vital Signs approach in coursework conducted during the Spring of
1996. We received 27 proposals and funded 9 projects. |
| Began Building Workup example
program |
January 1996 |
Nine schools selected to
develop example Building Workups conducted this coursework and met in San Francisco for
presentation and review. |
| Expanded Staff again |
March 1996 |
Allan Daly joins the Vital Signs staff as
Graduate Student Researcher. |
| Issued call for student
entries to the Vital Signs Case Study Competition |
April 1996 |
Distributed a poster to all
schools and a competition packet to interested parties calling for submissions to the
student Case Study Competition. |
| Distributed printed Resource
Package Sets |
May 1996 |
Mailed printed versions of
the Resource Packages to 300 architecture faculty including
representatives of the 117 schools of architecture in North America. |
| First Case Studies available
at the Vital Signs WWW Site |
July 1996 |
The first Building Case Studies were posted on the Vital Signs
WWW Site based on work by Berkeley students and the Building Workup Development grants. |
| Summer Session for
Architecture Faculty |
August 1996 |
A second summer training
session for architecture faculty was held in San Francisco. |
| Vital Signs Case Study
Competition |
December 1996 |
Submission deadline for the
student case study competition. |
| Vital Signs Case Study
Competition Jury Session |
January 1997 |
A distinguished jury of
experts in the field of building performance selects the winners of the Vital Signs
Student Case Study Competition. |
| Vital Signs Case Study
Competition Awards Ceremony |
March 1997 |
A celebration of the winning student entries to the Case Study Competition
with a lecture on "What Architects Can Learn From Buildings" by Joseph Esherick,
FAIA and Charles Dodge, FAIA, from the architectural firm of Esherick Homsey Dodge and
Davis. |
| Vital Signs Equipment Toolkit
Awards |
April 1997 |
Ten schools are awarded Vital
Signs Equipment Toolkits for use during part or all of the 1997-98 Academic year. Schools
selected through an RFP process included Cornell University, Mississippi State University,
North Dakota State University, Oklahoma State University, Texas A&M University,
University of Oregon, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, University of Waterloo,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and University of Texas, Austin. |
| Staffing changes |
August/ September 1997 |
Alison Kwok completes her
Ph.D. and leaves to take a teaching position at Cornell University. Sara Sweeney, an
architecture graduate student at UC Berkeley, joins the project. |
| Building Balance Point
Resource Package |
October 1997 |
The
Building Balance Point Resource Package, authored by Mike Utzinger and Jim Wasley from
the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, becomes available. The package examines energy
flows into and out of building. It is available at the Vital Signs internet site in PDF
format. |
| Second Vital Signs Student
Case Study Competition |
October 1997 |
Thanks to a grant from The
Educational Foundation of America, we announce the 1998
Vital Signs Student Case Study Competition. Entries are due by June 15, 1998 with
winners to be announced in the fall. |
| Teaching Support Grants |
November 1997 |
Thanks to a grant from The
Nathan Cummings Foundation, we offer seven additional $5000 grants in support of classes
incorporating student field studies of existing buildings during the Spring 1998 term.
Schools were selected through an RFP process. Cornell University, Florida A&M
University, North Dakota State University, Rice University, University of Cincinnati,
University of Idaho, and University of Virginia receive grants. |
| Vital Signs Equipment Toolkit |
January 1998 |
We release the RFP for equipment toolkit loans for the 1998-99
academic year. Proposals are due by April 3, 1998. |
| Teaching Support Grants |
January 1998 |
We hold a meeting in San
Francisco for faculty receiving $5000 teaching support grants. The goal of the meeting is
to review the planned case studies and assist the faculty members in defining a
project scope that can realistically be carried out by undergraduate students in one
quarter or semester. Attendees include the Vital Signs staff, Marietta Millet as guest
advisor, and the following grant recipients: Alison Kwok, Peter Stone, Carol Prafcke, Mark
Oberholzer, David Lee Smith, Sandy Stannard, Bruce Haglund, and Don Dougald. Recipients
not at the meeting included Gordon Wittenburg, Wolfgang F.E. Preisser and Michael Bednar. |
| Faculty Training Session |
March 1998 |
We announce our fourth Summer Training Session for architectural
educators to be held July 7-12, 1998. |
| Invited Panel at ACSA
Technology Conference |
March 1998 |
Vital Signs offers an invited
panel at the ACSA Technology Conference in Cleveland, Ohio. Panelists include: Cris
Benton/UC Berkeley; Jane Greenwood/Mississippi State University; Michael
Utzinger/University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Marietta Millet/ University of Washington;
and Alison Kwok/Cornell University. |
| Vital Signs Equipment Toolkit |
April 1998 |
Ten schools are awarded Vital
Signs Equipment Toolkits for use during part or all of the 1998-99 Academic year. Schools
selected through an RFP process included Judson College, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Oklahoma State University
Tuskegee University, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, University of
Cincinnati, University of Idaho, University of Oklahoma, University of Oregon, University
of Washington
|
| Vital Signs Case Study
Competition |
June 1998 |
Schools have sent in their
1998 competition entries. The 1998 competition is now closed. |
| Vital
Signs Equipment Toolkit |
April
1999 |
The
school that were awarded the Vital Signs Equipment Toolkits for use
during the 1999-2000 Academic year are; Carleton University, Kent
State University, Universidad de Francisco--Guatemala, University of
Idaho, University of Oregon, University of Washington |
