Addressing housing insecurity for community college students in Los Angeles

Design Research & Strategy
Project Overview
In early 2023, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass declared a state of emergency in response to the city’s growing rate of unhoused citizens. The year prior, the Greater Los Angeles Area saw a 10% increase in its unhoused population, an indication of a consistent growth trend that chronically outpaces efforts to develop attainable housing.
Among those facing housing insecurity are over 50,000 community college students, one-quarter of the total LACCD students throughout the city. Permanent solutions to the city’s housing insecurity require an integrated and systemic approach. Cuningham’s Design Catalyst: Changing the Housing Paradigm program presented an opportunity to research and develop innovative models for Los Angeles with nationwide implications.
My Contributions
- The ONLY design researcher and strategist in a core team of 5 architects
- Analysis and Synthesis of qualitative and quantitative findings
- Solutions Framework development
- Prototyping development
A final network of strategies in support of a generative future for housing insecure students
The Ask
Project Context: The project came through Cuningham Architects, with the ask from the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) to build housing for 52,000 housing insecure students in a way that is sustainable financially and environmentally.

Refined Research Focus: Utilize systems thinking tools and methodology to frame the issue of affordable housing more broadly, and identify opportunities for addressing this systemic challenge in a way that scales beyond just the LACCD student population.
Key Objectives
  • Understand the underlying drivers and interdependencies that contribute to the affordable housing crisis, both locally and nationally.
  • Identify leverage points within the system where interventions could have the greatest impact on increasing access to affordable housing.
  • Explore scalable, sustainable solutions that could be applied to address affordable housing needs for a wider population, beyond just the LACCD student demographic.
  • Synthesize the research findings into a comprehensive strategy that outlines a path forward for tackling the affordable housing challenge in a holistic, systems-oriented manner.
The Approach
  • Immersion & Primary Research: Engage in stakeholder interviews with a diverse set of experts, including policymakers, urban planners, housing advocates, developers, and members of the LACCD community.
  • Precedent Research: Analyze successful affordable housing initiatives from other contexts and assess their potential for adaptation and scalability.
  • Analysis & Synthesis: Apply systems thinking tools, such as causal loop diagrams and stock-and-flow models, to map the complex web of factors influencing affordable housing.
  • Brainstorming: Facilitate a design charrette or workshop to generate and evaluate potential systemic interventions with cross-sector stakeholders.
  • Strategic Solutions: Develop a comprehensive design research strategy that outlines a roadmap for addressing the affordable housing challenge in a sustainable, equitable, and scalable manner.
Phase 1
Immersion & Primary Research
We recruited people of various profiles within the backup and off-grid power space, and had one-on-one interviews with each one of them, anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour long.

We gained insights into pain points, price sensitivity, essential devices these people wanted to power, their core user experiences , and the maintenance culture built around having any form of backup power installation.
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Phase 2
Secondary [& Precedent] Research
We recruited people of various profiles within the backup and off-grid power space, and had one-on-one interviews with each one of them, anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour long.

We gained insights into pain points, price sensitivity, essential devices these people wanted to power, their core user experiences , and the maintenance culture built around having any form of backup power installation.
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Phase 3
Reframe
We recruited people of various profiles within the backup and off-grid power space, and had one-on-one interviews with each one of them, anywhere between 45 minutes to an hour long.

We gained insights into pain points, price sensitivity, essential devices these people wanted to power, their core user experiences , and the maintenance culture built around having any form of backup power installation.
We created this Dimensions Framework to account for a wholistic problem solving approach
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Causal loop, at the micro level, synthesizing the root causes of housing insecurity among community college students and its implications
Phase 4
Brainstorming
Our process began with a comprehensive brainstorming session exploring eight key categories, generating diverse ideas from co-living arrangements to innovative financing options. This expansive ideation was followed by a rigorous evaluation, distilling our thoughts into four key strategic approaches.

These final strategies [next slide] represent a synthesis of ideas from multiple initial categories, balancing community needs, innovative approaches, and practical implementation.

This process showcases our ability to start with a broad perspective and refine ideas into focused, actionable strategies, demonstrating a thoughtful and structured approach to problem-solving in urban planning and community development.
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Phase 5.1
Strategic Solutions
In response to the pressing need for affordable housing solutions, we developed a comprehensive Strategic Solutions Framework. Initially focused on Los Angeles, this scalable approach was designed to address housing insecurity across California and potentially nationwide.

Our framework employs a three-pronged strategy, visualized as an interconnected cube:
Network of Connections Leverages community resources and sustainability principles to build infrastructure supporting a resident-centered housing paradigm. This strategy aims to create and strengthen supportive community networks.
Increasing Inventory Identifies and capitalizes on opportunities to expand available housing stock, directly addressing the supply side of affordable housing.
Social Actions Tackles the social dimensions of housing insecurity by addressing mental models and providing essential services to support residents' overall well-being.

This holistic approach ensures that physical housing needs are met while fostering sustainable, supportive living environments. The framework's interconnected design emphasizes the synergy between these strategies, creating a robust, adaptable solution.

Originally conceived for student housing, the framework's versatility allows it to address housing insecurity for diverse populations. This project showcases our ability to develop scalable, multifaceted solutions to complex social challenges through innovative design research and strategic thinking.
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Phase 5.2
Strategic Solutions - Detailed

By conceptualizing our strategy as a cube, we emphasize that each aspect is not only crucial on its own but also reinforces and enhances the others. This visual framework allows stakeholders to easily grasp the multi-faceted nature of our approach and how different elements work together.

As you scroll through each face of the cube, you'll gain deeper insights into how these strategies interlock to create a holistic solution for affordable student housing in LA. This presentation not only showcases the depth of our thinking but also demonstrates our ability to present complex ideas in an engaging, easy-to-understand format.

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