Career & Technical Education
transformation bydesign
LS3P is an architecture, interiors, and planning firm celebrating more than 60 years of design excellence. With deep regional roots and a national reach, we offer large-firm expertise and resources with small-firm relationships and service. In everything we do, we’re guided by our vision: In our commitment to the Southeast, we create architecture that enriches community through a culture of design excellence, expertise, innovation, and collaborative engagement.
We have a passion for creating leading-edge learning environments and have done an extensive amount of research into the future of education. Our integrated approach—uniting architecture, interiors, and planning—fosters innovation, collaboration, and design excellence across every project.
From transformative public spaces to forward-thinking educational environments, LS3P’s work reflects a commitment not just to design, but to the people and places that make the Southeast unique.
bridging the gap
Relevant Training, Real Results.
Career-focused training environments are essential for aligning educational outcomes with the needs of local industries and LS3P is proud to have been at the forefront of developing best practices for these designs in collaboration with a number of our educational partners, from middle school through college.
These educational spaces are essential for providing students with practical skills and knowledge in preparation for various careers. They often include state-of-theart equipment and are designed to mimic real-world work environments, helping students develop skills that are directly applicable to their chosen professions. These spaces play a crucial role in the overall CTE curriculum and can greatly enhance the educational experience for students pursuing vocational and technical pathways.
Above all, these facilities must be designed for flexibility. Generous, durable, multifunctional spaces allow reconfiguration as tools and equipment change so that facilities can evolve along with the technology. In many cases, these training spaces are also transparent, putting the learning and technology on full display to highlight a new paradigm of education and the opportunities it provides.
crafting a new legacy
LS3P partners with school leaders and educators to evaluate legacy classrooms and develop renovation plans that align with the needs of modern CTE learning environments.
Across the Southeast, legacy CTE classrooms are straining under the weight of modern expectations. Designed decades ago for outdated tools and teaching methods, these spaces now struggle to accommodate the equipment, safety requirements, and instructional approaches that define today’s technical education. Automotive labs built 30 or 40 years ago now overflow with machinery far beyond their intended capacity. Welding programs—once limited to simple workstations—have evolved to include CAD/CAM suites driving advanced waterjet cutters, CNC routers, and industrial laser systems.
As industry technologies accelerate, schools continually add new equipment to keep pace—often without the space to match. The result: tight circulation paths, inadequate safety clearances, and instructional zones that are compromised before class even begins. Many older CTE spaces no longer meet ADA or OSHA standards, and some rooms, like former darkrooms, have been repurposed into storage rather than supporting meaningful learning.
This is where LS3P steps in. Partnering closely with school leaders and educators, the firm evaluates aging classrooms and crafts renovation strategies that transform outdated labs into vibrant, future-ready learning environments.
Modern CTE spaces look—and function—entirely differently. Today’s classrooms are intentionally designed for collaboration and hands-on exploration, placing project-based learning at the center of the student experience. Flexible layouts allow educators to shift seamlessly between lecture, teamwork, and applied practice. Modular furniture, mobile workstations, and adaptable storage systems give teachers the freedom to reconfigure their rooms at a moment’s notice.
Open-plan studios, maker spaces, and innovation labs cultivate teamwork, communication, and design thinking. Writable walls invite brainstorming; breakout zones encourage smallgroup problem solving; and digital collaboration tools mirror the workflows students will encounter in the modern
workplace. These choices aren’t simply aesthetic—they are strategic, supporting engagement, creativity, and long-term facility resilience.
Technology is now the backbone of every CTE environment. Classrooms function as tech-powered hubs where industry-aligned software and equipment integrate seamlessly into instruction. Large project tables with shared displays, multimedia connectivity, and digital tools allow students to develop the technical fluency and collaborative skills essential for career readiness.
In short, the modern CTE ecosystem is dynamic, adaptable, and deeply connected to real world industry practices—and LS3P is helping school districts bring these transformative learning environments to life.
cross-pollinated learning
At LS3P, our design teams are leading the way in shaping next-generation facilities.
CTE is undergoing a powerful transformation—one that brings the real world directly into the classroom. Today’s most successful CTE programs aren’t just updating equipment; they’re reinventing learning environments to mirror the workplaces students aspire to enter. Commercialgrade kitchens, medical exam rooms, fabrication studios, and professional office suites are replacing generic classrooms, creating immersive settings where students build both technical proficiency and the soft skills—communication, teamwork, accountability—that employers value most.
At LS3P, our design teams are at the forefront of this evolution. Through a rich cross-pollination of expertise spanning K–12, technical colleges, higher education, and workplace design, we’re shaping next-generation CTE facilities that resonate with industry standards and inspire student success. This interdisciplinary approach creates spaces that are not only functional but future-focused—built to adapt, innovate, and spark curiosity.
These learning environments are more than instructional spaces; they are vibrant hubs of advanced exploration, places where academic concepts meet
practical application and students gain the confidence to tackle real world challenges. Hands-on practice becomes second nature. Collaboration becomes a core skill. Technology becomes a seamless extension of the learning experience.
Investing in CTE programs—and purpose built facilities designed to support them—opens doors for every student. With the right environment, learners can follow their passions, strengthen essential skills, and step boldly into the careers that will shape tomorrow’s workforce.
Davis-Edwards-Harris Educational Complex
This new construction includes advanced CTE labs for aviation, logistics, business, and family consumer sciences, providing students with cutting-edge spaces for career and technical education.
PROGRAM AREAS
Aviation
Business Sciences
Family Consumer Sciences
Logistics
Digital Media Lab
East Cooper Center for Advanced Studies
Designed to bridge the gap between high school and college, this school provides technical skills and training for multiple High Schools in the District.
PROGRAM AREAS
Media Technology & Photography
Entrepreneurship & Business Services
Automotive Technology
Cosmetology
Automotive Technology
Pre-Medicine Academy
STEM Academy
Project Lead the Way
Vernon Malone College & Career Academy RALEIGH,
An adaptive re-use of a CocaCola bottling plant turned into a Career Academy to be used by the Wake County School Board, Wake County, and Wake Technical Community College.
PROGRAM AREAS
Biopharmaceutical Technology
Cosmetology
Facility Maintenance Technology
Nurse Aide
Simulation & Game Development
Welding
Business, Finance, & Information
Technology
Offering students the opportunity to take industry certified courses built on skill-driven instruction & standards.
PROGRAM AREAS
Automotive Technology
Building Construction
Career Academy
Cosmetology
Culinary Arts
Firefighting
Graphic Communications
Law Enforcement
Machine Tool Technology
Mechatronics
Welding
COLUMBIA, SC
Richland Two Institute of Innovation
A centralized facility serving the entire district and dedicated to educational innovation.
PROGRAM AREAS
Next Energy Engineering
3D Printing & 3D Design with CATIA Computer Programming & Coding
Culinary Business
Fashion Marketing
B.E.A.T.S & Animation
Academy at Smith Renovation
The renovation of an old, non-functional space into a positive environment that prepares students for future careers, with an emphasis on biomedical technologies and specialized health science professions for the 21st century.
PROGRAM AREAS
Pharmacy Technician (PHTC)
Counseling & Mental Health (CMHC)
PLTW Biotechnology Research & Development
PLWB
Healthcare Profession (HPCP)
Ben Lippen High School Addition
COLUMBIA, SC
A two-story addition and selective renovation expanded the campus to accommodate 100 additional students with new spaces for chemistry, robotics, engineering, and visual arts, all completed while the existing school remained occupied.
PROGRAM AREAS
Visual Arts Classroom
Robotics Lab
Chemistry Lab
West Cabarrus High School CONCORD, NC
West Cabarrus High School integrates flexible, technology-rich learning environments with specialized labs and maker spaces to support Career and Technical Education pathways in health sciences, engineering, and aviation.
PROGRAM AREAS
Aviation & Aerospace
Logisitics
Engineering
Biomedical Technology
Health Sciences
The renovation of traditional classroom space into innovative, career-focused spaces that teach soft skills, technical skills, and academic skills.
PROGRAM AREAS
Global Logistics & Supply Chain
Management
Drone Technology
Health Care Professional
Entrepreneurship
Sports & Event Marketing
Computer Science
BLOUNTVILLE, TN
West Ridge High School
A High School that celebrates career and technology programming for workforce development and was designed around “preparing students for the future.”
PROGRAM AREAS
Business Services
Architecture & Construction
Audio/Visual Production
Automotive Maintenance & Light
Repair
Aviation Flight
Cosmetology
Criminal Justice & Correction
Services
Culinary Arts
Digital Arts & Design
Horticulture Science
Hospitality & Tourism Management
Machining Technology
Nursing Services
Pastry & Baking Arts
Sport & Human Performance
Teaching As A Profession
Therapeutic Services
Welding
