ANN ARBOR—Five University of Michigan deans are seeking to create an inspiring 21st-century educational, interactive environment like “no other place on Earth.”

That place could be North Campus, according to David Munson, the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering.

The WorkPlay competition aims to find the most captivating concept that will be the catalyst in transforming North Campus into a destination place. While Munson prefers not to limit entrants with a list of prerequisites or preconceptions, there is a tangible incentive: $20,000 in awards and $500,000 budget to develop the project. Deadline for submissions is Feb. 8, 2008.

The competition is cosponsored by Arts on Earth, a campus-wide initiative that produces events and aims to heighten public awareness of the inextricable connection among the arts and other academic disciplines.

Believing the appropriate balance between work and play is a valuable lifelong pursuit, Munson and four other U-M deans are challenging teams of students, faculty and staff to come up with ideas to recast the physical setting, social atmosphere and cultural possibilities of North Campus. One of three concentrated areas of buildings, residence halls and facilities at U-M in Ann Arbor, North Campus is located northeast of the U-M medical site.

“We’re interested in creating more of a community, where people are closer together,” Munson said. “Over time, we’d like the core parts of north campus to develop more of an urban feel while we still preserve the woods.

“To have more people-to-people interactions, we need locations where people will come together,” he said. “The winning WorkPlay project will be one of those locations.”

In her Nov. 15 address to mark the fifth-year anniversary of her stewardship, U-M President Mary Sue Coleman said “an essential component of a Michigan education is our approach to the arts.”

Recognizing the unprecedented cooperation among the deans, she spotlighted the need to “further energize North Campus as an epicenter of creativity.”

In addition to Munson, North Campus deans sponsoring WorkPlay include: Douglas Kelbaugh, dean of the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning; Christopher Kendall, dean of the School of Music, Theatre & Dance; Martha Pollack, dean of the School of Information; and Bryan Rogers, dean of the School of Art & Design.

“We’re hoping that the project will offer a compelling destination at the heart of campus, resulting in better equilibrium between work and play,” Rogers said

Entries must consist of teams composed of U-M students, faculty and/or staff. At least two students on each team must be pursuing degrees in different north campus units. Each team must represent at least two or more disciplines.

The project should “strive to be sensitive to the environment and to incorporate, promote and/or celebrate sustainable design principles. . . The list of possible scenarios goes on, limited only by your team’s imagination, the concept’s viability, and the budget,” according to the competition statement.

Included in proposals should be ideas for a destination, attraction, structure or armature to foster a range of cultural, academic and social activities. Elements included among examples of possible proposals are giant video screens, performance stages, and simulcasts of campus life from points around campus.

The proposed site is within the block bounded by Bonisteel to the south, Beal to the east, Hayward to the north, and Murfin to the west. For a map, visit: http://www.umich.edu/~info/maps.html

Proposals should particularly consider possibilities of the open space to the west of the Duderstadt Center, between the Pierpont Commons and Walgreen Drama Center Stamps Auditorium building.

The winning team will receive $10,000 with $5,000 going to the runner-up, and $5,000 distributed to honorable mentions.

Winners will be announced in March. A design team will be assembled, based on the construction demands of the winning proposal. Groundbreaking could begin several months after the final design is approved, Munson said.

Architect Eero Saarinen designed North Campus in the early 1950s, after the board of regents acquired the land. The roads, buildings and walkways are more accommodating for a car culture, rather than an intimate space where students can socialize and hang out.

An informational meeting will be held 5 p.m. Monday (Dec. 10) in the EECS Building, Room 1200. For more information, visit: www.artsonearth.org/workplay