SFA Wins National Award for Building Sustainably

Riki Fujitani, SFA executive director, second from left, celebrates with other Mass Timber Award recipients. Photo courtesy Softwood Lumber Board.

SFA was one of four winners in the 2025 Mass Timber Competition: Building Sustainable Schools, sponsored by the Softwood Lumber Board and the USDA Forest Service.

Riki Fujitani, SFA executive director, accepted the award, which included a $382,500 grant from the two sponsoring organizations, at a recent awards ceremony in Boston. This year, the annual

competition awarded $1.8 million to support projects that accelerate the adoption of mass timber in the United States, with a focus on K-12 educational environments.

“Mass timber” is an engineered wood product made by combining smaller pieces of wood with adhesives or fasteners to create large, strong structural components. It offers sustainability and fire resistance and helps accelerate construction. It is often used as a modern alternative to

steel and concrete. This helps to address potential supply-chain or tariff challenges that can delay building schools and significantly add to material costs.

The winning projects demonstrate how biophilic design, or design that celebrates nature, using mass timber can strengthen academic performance, improve teacher and staff

well-being, and create healthier, more resilient learning spaces for students.

“In our islands, honoring our host culture and building in harmony with nature and respect for the ‘āina are critically important,” Fujitani said. “The design-build approach that SFA has adopted allows us to choose durable, sustainable materials like mass timber.”

The other three winning entries this year included Cleveland High School in Portland,

Oregon; the new Lawton Elementary School in Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Whittier

Elementary School in Washington, D.C. For more details, click here to view the news release issued by the Soft Lumber Board.

Liz Lee Presents at National Conference
Giving Students a Voice in the School Design Process

Liz Lee presents ”Not Your Typical Classroom” at the A4LE's LearningScapes Conference on October 30, 2025.

Liz Lee, SFA's Planning Officer, shared her expertise on the importance of giving students and communities a voice in the planning and design of student learning at A4LE’s LearningScapes Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, in late October. View the presentation description here.

Her presentation focused on how the simple act of asking for student input on facility design early on and carrying those ideas through to fruition not only contributes to the students’ sense of ownership and belonging, but also builds their connection with ideas that truly impact the school. 
The iterative process of ideation, feedback and critique from a professional in-house design team provides students a safe space to explore, make mistakes, and take chances. Based on Lizʻs experience, this results in the design team experiencing a profound shift in their preconceived ideas and viewpoints and helps shape safe and equitable spaces at the school. Liz is bringing these experiences as SFA and other partners begin the planning and design process for the new central Maui school.

“By including students in the design process, we showed the greater community how all voices are respected and validated,” said Liz, drawing upon her previous experiences with successful school design. “By engaging in such a deeply collaborative process, we built spaces where students not only felt protected and safe but also empowered.”


Prior to joining SFA, Liz served as Global Director of Planning and Design at Avenues the World School. Liz is a design professional committed to exploring how the built environment can positively influence learning and interactions within school communities.