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The Children’s Garden is a 2018 landscape-design project at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women (ICIW) in Mitchellville, Iowa. Designed by Iowa State University College of Design students with the Iowa Department of Corrections and prison users, it sought to make visits less intimidating for children while giving mothers and families more natural ways to play, talk and spend time together. The project is best understood as a documented design case study: its award entry explains the program, collaboration and security strategy, but does not provide a post-occupancy evaluation or prove changes in recidivism, mental health or child outcomes.
The design combined a natural playscape, open lawn, path, native planting and a quieter conversation grove. Its most transferable lesson for construction and facilities teams is not a particular piece of equipment; it is the deliberate balancing of family-friendly activity, privacy, visibility and correctional control.
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Children’s Garden is the name of an outdoor visitation-space project at ICIW, a women’s prison in Mitchellville, Iowa. Iowa State University students Matthew Iekel, Krithika Mohan and Jenna Niday developed the design with faculty adviser Julie Stevens, the Iowa Department of Corrections, incarcerated women, children, staff and correctional officers. The project appears in the American Society of Landscape Architects’ 2018 Student Awards entry.
The stated aim was to replace an intimidating, institutional visitation experience with a setting that supports ordinary family behavior: moving, playing, sitting, talking and taking a break. The award entry presents design intent and participation, not a measured study of what happened after construction.
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Why did the designers focus on children’s prison visits?
The project team argued that prisons can feel frightening or confusing to young visitors and that temporary caregivers may sometimes avoid visits for that reason. The entry frames the garden as one response to that context, rather than as proof that a garden alone changes family behavior.
The designers expressed the emotional problem through questions children might ask—where their mother went, what the prison is like and when they will meet again—and questions mothers might ask about who is caring for their children and whether they are safe. These are rhetorical questions written by the project authors, not recorded quotations from study participants.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteThe scale of the family-connection issue was also part of the project’s rationale. The 2018 entry attributes an estimate of more than 1.7 million U.S. children affected by parental incarceration to the student project team. It also reports that ICIW’s population grew from 56 in 1983 to 740 in 2017. Those figures belong to the award narrative; the page does not identify the underlying datasets or establish the facility’s current population.
How were incarcerated women, children and staff involved?
Participation occurred throughout the design process rather than only at a final presentation. The students met with incarcerated women, staff and officers in focus groups, then returned for design presentations. Children took part in collage sessions, while collage and model-making workshops helped the team identify desired activities and concerns.
This process influenced both the program and the physical details. It gave the designers information about how families wanted to move through the space, where conversation felt comfortable and which elements could make a visit feel less like a security procedure. It also exposed operational concerns that a conventional public-park design process would not capture.
The ASLA awards jury summarized the broader ambition this way: “The project explores how spatial design and programming can affect prison populations, including incarcerated individuals, their children, families, visitors and correctional staff.” The statement is the jury’s assessment of the entry, not a claim that the project documented those effects with outcome data.
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What spaces and features did the garden include?
The plan mixed active, social and quiet zones so that a visit did not depend on one type of interaction.
- Natural playscape: A play area for co-play included play structures and interactive musical instruments. The emphasis was on activities that children and mothers could do together rather than children being separated into a stand-alone play corner.
- Open lawn: An unprogrammed lawn provided room for informal games and activities that could change with the age and energy of visitors.
- Walking and tricycle path: A defined route supported movement for children who needed to stay active and gave families a simple circuit for walking side by side.
- Colorful and native planting: Planting introduced seasonal change, texture and visual relief from the institutional setting. Native selections were part of the project description, but the entry does not publish a complete plant schedule.
- Conversation grove: Aspen trees and benches created a quieter retreat for more private conversations while remaining part of the supervised outdoor environment.
- Custom interactive fence: Wood and metal panels incorporated chalkboards. The team said small apertures allowed women to show family members where they lived and worked inside the prison, turning a required boundary into an element of communication.
The combination matters. A lawn or play structure alone would not provide the same range of choices. Families could move from energetic play to a bench conversation without leaving the visitation area.
How did the design balance privacy with prison security?
Security was a primary design constraint, not an afterthought. The team describes maintaining sightlines across the garden and iterating the custom fence so that enclosure did not create hidden areas that staff could not supervise. The final arrangement had to support family interaction while preserving the visual control required by a correctional facility.
That produces a different design problem from a neighborhood playground. Open views, controlled entry, durable construction and predictable circulation all influence the location and height of elements. A grove intended to feel sheltered still needs enough visibility for officers. A fence that invites drawing or conversation must remain secure, cleanable and resistant to tampering.
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Which design theories informed the layout?
The project narrative combines therapeutic-garden and biophilic principles with Roger Ulrich’s Stress Reduction Theory. The designers describe four practical mechanisms: movement, social contact, a sense of control and natural distraction.
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Movement appears in the path, lawn and play equipment. Social contact is supported by co-play areas and benches positioned for conversation. A sense of control comes from giving families choices about where to sit, walk or play instead of forcing every interaction into one fixed arrangement. Trees, planting, changing light and outdoor sounds provide natural distractions from the prison environment.
These are design rationales, not measured findings from this garden. The ASLA entry does not report pre- and post-visit surveys, behavioral observations, maintenance records or child-development measures. It is accurate to say the layout was intended to support stress reduction and family connection; it is not accurate to claim that the project demonstrated those outcomes.
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What do the project’s demographic figures mean?
The entry says more than 60 percent of women at ICIW were mothers and that more than 60 percent had a child under the age of majority. It also says the number of incarcerated women had risen almost 200 percent since the 1980s. The page does not specify a measurement year or identify the original datasets for those percentages, so they should be read as figures reported by the 2018 project team, not as current Iowa or national statistics.
That qualification is important for anyone using the project to plan a facility today. Population mix, visitation policy, age ranges and staffing can change. A current project should confirm local data with the correctional agency and, where possible, publish the date and source for every planning assumption.
What can a construction or facilities team learn from the project?
The garden offers a practical sequence for planning family-centered outdoor space in a high-security setting:
- Define the visitation problem in operational terms. Document who visits, how long visits last, where queues form, which activities are permitted and what staff must be able to see or reach.
- Include users before drawing a final plan. Use separate sessions with incarcerated parents, children or caregivers, officers and managers. Collage, simple models and annotated plans can reveal needs that a formal meeting misses.
- Map active, social and quiet functions. Reserve space for energetic play, flexible lawn use, walking and one or more calmer conversation areas. Avoid making every zone equally loud or equally exposed.
- Resolve sightlines with the layout, not just cameras. Test views from staff positions, entrances and circulation routes. Check how mature trees, play structures, fences and seasonal planting will affect visibility.
- Specify durable, maintainable materials. Outdoor surfaces, seating, chalkboard coatings, hardware and play equipment must withstand weather, frequent use, cleaning and security inspection. A consumer chalkboard panel is not automatically equivalent to the custom fence element described in the project.
- Review accessibility and age range. Paths, seating and play opportunities should work for toddlers, school-age children, caregivers with mobility limitations and family members who do not want to use play equipment.
- Plan operations before opening. Set rules for cleaning, plant replacement, chalk or other loose materials, equipment inspection, winter conditions and temporary closure. Assign responsibility for each task.
- Evaluate after occupancy. Record use patterns, visitor feedback, incidents, maintenance demands and staff observations, while protecting privacy. Use the results to adjust programming and planting rather than assuming the original design is permanent.
Is the Children’s Garden still open and unchanged?
The 2018 entry says construction began in April 2018 and was expected to finish in early June. The reviewed source does not establish whether the garden remains open, how it is maintained, whether visitation rules have changed or whether the built work is unchanged today. Any current claim about its condition requires confirmation from the facility or a newer public record.
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This uncertainty does not erase the project’s value as a case study. It simply separates what is documented—the design process and intended program—from what is not documented—long-term operation and outcomes.
What evidence would show whether a prison visitation garden works?
A credible evaluation would need more than photographs or an award description. It could combine anonymous visitor surveys, structured observations of how families use each zone, attendance and visit-duration records, incident reports, maintenance logs and interviews with staff and caregivers. Measures should be collected before opening and at defined intervals afterward, with clear safeguards for children’s privacy.
Researchers would also need a comparison strategy if they wanted to attribute changes to the garden rather than to policy, staffing or population changes. Possible comparisons include another visitation area at the same facility or a phased opening of different features. Even then, results would apply to the specific facility and program, not automatically to every prison.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How can the ideas be adapted without copying the project?
A smaller facility may not have room for a full playscape and grove. The underlying pattern can still be adapted: create one visible, flexible activity area; provide a short walking route; add comfortable seating for conversation; use planting for shade and sensory interest; and make required boundaries interactive where security permits.
Adaptation should begin with a site-specific security and maintenance review. Confirm allowable materials, fire and evacuation routes, camera coverage, staff sightlines, accessibility requirements, climate exposure and rules for movable objects. The goal is not to reproduce the Iowa plan, but to provide families with meaningful choices inside the limits of the local facility.
What is the lasting lesson of the Children’s Garden?
The project shows how landscape architecture can address a difficult institutional brief without pretending that design solves every social problem. Its strongest contribution is the integration of family participation, varied activity, natural elements and security review in one process.
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The award entry supports a clear conclusion: a visitation garden can be designed as a place for relationships rather than merely a controlled outdoor room. It does not, by itself, establish improved recidivism, mental health or child outcomes. Those claims require independent, current evaluation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who designed the Children’s Garden at ICIW?
Matthew Iekel, Krithika Mohan and Jenna Niday, students in Iowa State University’s College of Design, developed the project with faculty adviser Julie Stevens. The Iowa Department of Corrections and people who used or managed the facility also participated in the process.
When was the Iowa prison garden constructed?
The 2018 award entry says construction began in April 2018 and was expected to be completed in early June. The source does not confirm the final completion date or document later renovations.
Can a prison add a playground without compromising security?
It can be possible when play equipment, planting, fences and seating are arranged around verified staff sightlines and controlled circulation. A correctional-facility design review must also address durability, tamper resistance, accessibility, emergency access and maintenance before equipment is specified.
What should be measured after opening a family visitation garden?
Useful measures include who uses each zone, how long visits last, visitor and staff feedback, safety incidents, equipment repairs and seasonal maintenance. Collecting baseline information before construction makes later changes easier to interpret.
