FGMA’s Community Engagement Hierarchy of Needs offers a structured approach to building that connection, guiding districts from initial awareness to true community ownership.

This framework that helps school districts move communities from basic awareness to meaningful participation in shaping their schools. The approach recognizes that residents must first understand the issues and trust the process before they can engage in deeper conversations about solutions, design and long-term impact. By building engagement step by step — from transparency and relevance to collaboration and stewardship — the framework helps create school environments shaped with the community, not simply for it.

Two suburban Chicago districts — Salt Creek SD 48 and Glenview SD 34 — illustrate how intentional engagement creates meaningful design outcomes.

Salt Creek SD 48 Designed with the Community

At Salt Creek, the process started with a deliberate commitment to open dialogue.

“We didn’t want to present the community with a finished design,” said Matt Toepper, AIA, Project Manager at FGMA. “We wanted the design process itself to invite discussion.”

Social participation took many forms; community gatherings were hosted at each school, scheduled at varied times and days to maximize access. The district introduced the facility challenges and invited feedback. Security and safety quickly became central themes. Accessibility concerns were raised, relating to entrances without ramps and multi-level access pathways to school offices. Aging locker rooms and bathrooms unexpectedly emerged as a community priority. The middle school gymnasium was recognized for its tight configuration and support increased for replacement, in lieu of renovation. A grade level shift would move fifth grade out of the middle school and second grade into the primary building, and would better align curriculum to the age groups and school building advantages.

Incorporating community feedback, “Esteem is developing when the community is being heard,” Matt shared. “Safe Schools, Secure Futures” became integral to the messaging for the referendum campaign.

The conversations extended beyond school walls. District leadership met with the local Rotary Club, mayors and community managers across Salt Creek’s three feeder communities. The goal was to surface concerns early and ensure each jurisdiction felt heard and was actively involved in the process.

Salt Creek’s structured forums combined large group presentations with opportunities for one-on-one dialogue, creating space for both shared understanding and individualized concerns. The District also took the time to meet individually with certain property owners in direct adjacency to proposed improvements to ensure concerns, if any, could be identified and addressed. Relevance to the community became clearer when the community learned about the school safety and security challenges that the existing schools faced.

Community pride became a defining theme. “Salt Creek people are proud of their schools,” Matt said. “They wanted the aesthetic to reflect how they feel about their schools.” Many facilities had not seen significant updates since the 1960s. Residents wanted improvements that addressed both performance and identity.

By inviting participation before design decisions were finalized, the district ensured the final solutions reflected lived experience, local values and garnered the support of the community.

The referendum was placed on the ballot in November 2024 and passed with an approval percentage of over 60%.

Building Consensus Layer by Layer in Glenview SD 34

In Glenview, engagement began with a clear assessment of need.

FGMA provided a detailed facilities evaluation that identified $82 million in deferred maintenance — a sum far beyond available funding. The district expanded the conversation to include educational space needs, aligning facilities with contemporary curriculum delivery. Instead of presenting a single proposal, bundled “tracks” of improvements were developed for review.

“Building trust through awareness and transparency is the first important step in building the foundational needs for successful community engagement,” noted Mike Denz, Design Principal at FGMA. “We do this through a data driven process guided by measurable evidence and not assumptions or intuition.”
Before taking the discussion to the broader public, the district presented findings to its Citizens Finance Advisory Committee, a volunteer oversight group that reviews district finances. C-FAC examined bonding capacity, tax impact and funding scenarios. This step reinforced financial transparency and strengthened trust.

Tours revealed aging infrastructure and outdated systems. Seeing conditions firsthand shifted the conversation from abstract cost to tangible impact to transform foundational needs.

Inclusivity was central to the process. “For inclusive social participation accommodating the diverse needs of your community is imperative to building the esteem needed,” said Mike. Spanish-language sessions were offered with bilingual architects and district staff present to answer questions directly. This approach broadened participation and ensured families could engage fully in discussions about design and financing.

“We wanted people to be able to ask questions and have real conversations in their own language,” Troy said. “Having bilingual architects and district staff in the room made those conversations much more meaningful.”

Feedback influenced outcomes in visible ways. At Henking Elementary, for instance, neighbors expressed concern about the scale of a new multi-purpose room addition. The design team lowered rooflines near property lines, adjusted massing and materials and introduced landscaping to buffer views. At Lyon Elementary, an iconic 1940s building and a prominent local landmark, the community emphasized preserving the architectural character of the school while adapting it to the 21st century. The addition responded to original materials and proportions while maintaining a contemporary identity.

Another key group in the engagement process was educators themselves. Teachers were given the opportunity to experience and evaluate new learning environments through a pilot program that tested design concepts before district-wide implementation. FGMA created six prototype classrooms across different schools, each outfitted with varying layouts, teaching wall configurations, lighting strategies, flooring materials and flexible furniture options. By observing how teachers and students interacted with the spaces over time, the district was able to evaluate both instructional effectiveness and maintenance considerations, ultimately informing renovations that would later be implemented across approximately 450 classrooms.

Each step built upon the last — assessment, administrative alignment, financial oversight, public forums, targeted neighbor meetings and iterative design refinement.

The referendum was placed on the ballot in March 2020 and passed with an approval percentage of nearly 66%.

From Engagement to Stewardship

In both districts, engagement extended beyond the referendum. Groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings invited the community back into newly modernized spaces. Families experienced the impact firsthand during school events and open houses.

“The process created a layered understanding for both designers and the community,” Troy said. “By the time the community was asked to vote, people understood both the challenges and the solutions.”

That’s the real outcome of meaningful engagement. Not just better buildings, but stronger connections between schools and the people they serve.