Penn State architecture students design year-round concept for Welch Pool

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa — Second-year Penn State architecture students in the College of Arts and Architecture’s Stuckeman School completed their first major design challenge of the fall 2025 semester re-envisioning Welch Pool as a new year-round community hub.

The project, “Welch Pool Across the Seasons,” asked students in ARCH 231: Architectural Design I, taught by instructors Reggie Aviles, Meisam Dadfarmay, Felecia Davis, Istvan Gyulovics, Marcus Shaffer and Alexandra Staub, to transform one of State College’s public pools into a multi-use facility that could serve residents and the public beyond the summer months.

Set along Westerly Parkway, Welch Pool currently operates from Memorial Day through Labor Day and remains unused during the winter. Students designed proposals for a new two-story entrance building that included updated amenities including a ticketing area, lifeguard lounge, mechanical spaces, concession stand, and a new year-round spa featuring saunas, a hot tub, shower area and fresh-air garden.

“We were able to get a tour of the whole complex and spoke with the person that manages it and we heard some of these issues about what was missing,” Staub said. “But we also thought it would be a great opportunity to have another program in that area that would be a winter program so that the complex could be open year-round.”

By integrating both summer and winter programs, students considered how spaces could transition between seasons, balancing open-air designs for warmer weather with the insulation and privacy required during the winter months. The assignment emphasized the importance of circulation, accessibility and adaptability.

Students began by working at a conceptual scale before developing detailed program ideas that explored how spaces could be organized both aesthetically and functionally.

“You can see the different variety of approaches is phenomenal,” Staub said. “It really speaks to the creativity of the students and to the way they’re approaching the idea of making spaces, spaces that are pleasant to use, that are functional, and that work well for the community.”

Work from all six sections of ARCH 231 is displayed on the first floor of the Stuckeman Family Building, showcasing the range of creative interpretations and model-building techniques students developed throughout the project.