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A new Scripps space devoted to collaboration

Opening a new door to collaboration. Opening a new door to collaboration.

Before:  Room 382 office

Room 382 Upham was a staff office prior to the renovation.


Design students from students

Students in a Miami University interior design studio proposed a design for the Collaboratory.


Pictures of the room as work was being done

Renovation in progress…..


View of the new Collaboratory space

The new Collaboratory was completed in December 2018 and it was soon a preferred working space.


 Meeting taking place in the room  Meeting taking place in the room
 Scripps staff member and her graduate assistant discuss a research project.  Scripps staff member and her graduate assistant discuss a research project.
 Staff member using interactive board  Staff member using interactive board
 Student meeting  Student meeting
 Age-friendly Oxford meeting  Age-friendly Oxford meeting
 Student working with advisor  Student working with advisor
 Student - faculty project meeting  Student - faculty project meeting
 Researchers using the interactive display  Researchers using the interactive display

Close up image of Rookwood Tiles

Many thanks to Marilyn Scripps and the Miami University interior design
students for making our vision for the Collaboratory a reality.


In 2016, the Scripps leadership team began to envision a physical space to foster collaborative, interdisciplinary research and creation of innovative programs. Thanks to a lot of support and teamwork along the way, the Scripps Gerontology Center Collaboratory was completed in December of 2018. This creative and versatile space has become the preferred setting for all kinds of meetings and work sessions.

The design phase began with a Miami University senior interior design studio, taught by Katherine Setser. The student teams took on the challenge of transforming a former office into a multipurpose area for working creatively with one another and our many partners. They gathered information about the organization’s needs, then developed and presented their proposals for layout, color, finishes, furniture and technology. A proposal was selected by the Scripps leadership team and construction began in spring of 2018.

Marilyn Scripps, the great-granddaughter of E.W. Scripps (who founded in 1922 the Scripps Gerontology Center’s forerunner, the Scripps Foundation for Research in Population Problems) was instrumental in making the Collaboratory a reality. In addition to generous financial support, the entrepreneur and philanthropist facilitated a connection with Rookwood Pottery in Cincinnati (which she owns) that resulted in the visual centerpiece of the Collaboratory space: a Rookwood tile installation designed to inspire creativity. The room also includes furnishings to support various group sizes and types of interaction, a write-on wall, and a touchscreen platform. The Scripps Collaboratory is in high demand as a work space for research project teams, strategic planning workgroups, and Scripps collaborations that include local, state, and national partners.