Students in the College of Architecture value having a space to work on their designs, using the university’s state-of-the-art Innovation Studio on Innovation campus to plan out dream projects and stretch their creative strengths.

Through FACT and PLAIN design-build studios’ Art Chapel project, master’s student Meagan Willoughby and her peers are constructing a space for folks in the F Street Neighborhood Church community to stretch their imaginations.

“I want to know that what I’m doing is actually impacting people,” Willoughby said.

Her particular role in the Art Chapel project is building affordable furniture and rolling ladders for use in the space.

“It’s not often we’re able to make things for people who can actually benefit the most from architecture,” Willoughby said.

The FACT and PLAIN design-build studios work with community non-profits to create original, practical spaces for the populations they serve — while also providing invaluable real-world experience for architecture students. The Art Chapel will offer studio space, exhibitions, classes and other art-related events for the community, turning an older chapel space on the corner of 13th and F streets into a creative gathering center for the neighborhood.

“With design studio, we get to design and build when working on projects,” Willoughby said. “We’re working with an actual contractor and learning how real-world projects happen, which is super valuable to experience while you’re still in school.”

The community impact the Art Chapel project aims for brings with it important design considerations.

“Durability is super important — we don’t want to frighten people away by making it too perfect,” Willoughby said of the practical decisions being made by Husker architects. “It needs to be usable for people and not too precious. The whole point of the space is that it’s going to have paint everywhere.”

While still in progress, the Art Chapel already had an opening for a First Friday art walk last fall, allowing people in the community to display their work on its walls.

“We were able to talk to people who are actually going to be using it eventually,” Willoughby said. “It’s really amazing to see how excited people are to have this in their community.”