I'm currently doing some research for an article on the layout of my campus, so naturally I'd like to figure out: Where does the ubiquitous college "quad" come from, and why is it so popular among modern universities? Whose idea was it to implement this sort of design in the first place? We tend to associate higher education with large green spaces - where does this association come from?
Any particular sources I should look to for info on this sort of stuff, or just general pointers to set me in the right direction for research (any good books on the topic) would be much appreciated!
The quad is short for quadrangle. There have been quads for nearly as long as there have been universities Mob Quad in Oxford is one of the oldest examples. Quads trace their roots to monastery cloisters. The cloister garth (garden in the middle of the cloister) was an important place for monks to gather. The cloister itself existed because it provided a covered interior space with natural light very useful for studying.
The tradition of building in a square with an open courtyard in the center continues today for the same reason it began thousands of years ago. The open center allows for natural light and the garden in the center is a nice place for people to gather.
I suggest asking r/architecture this question.
Architecture history provides the Agora from Greece.
More obviously relevant or parallel are Piazzas or Plazas that are programmed similarly. Check those on Wikipedia and you'll find a pretty good amount of information (sorry, I'd provide the link myself if I were not on my phone and have to run now).
Top Universities compete to attract the best students and best faculty.
Studies show that the attractiveness of the University campus is the second most important factor (after financial support) in a student's decision on which university (of those at which they have been accepted) to attend.
Landscaping is perhaps the most important element in the attractiveness of a university campus, and quads have long been recognized as an attractive landscaping element.
One of the factors which has led to the continuing ubiquity of the quad in University landscaping (and evidence of the importance and value of landscaping to Universities) is the great influence that Frederik Law Olmstead's Landscape Architecture Company (the first such in the world) had on the design of American University campuses.
Olmstead, the designer of Central Park in New York, established his landscape architecture firm in Brookline Massachusetts. Between 1857 and 1950 Olmstead or his firm designed the master plan or served as landscape consultants for 355 college and university campuses.
It is possible that Olmstead's company earned more money from the university sector than any other supplier (at least of physical infrastructure design) in history.
This is an indicator of the importance of landscape and landscape architecture to universities.
Olmstead's influence may well have been important in maintaining, growing, and spreading the quadrangle tradition in campus design though that probably originated with quads in Oxford, or in Medieval monasteries
For those of us who's never heard of this "quad" thing. Can you explain? What does it look like? How common is it?
The first idea that came to my mind was the use of the gymnasium in Ancient Greece as a place for both exercise and education. The gymnasium was also a sort of courtyard, where young boys would meet for exercise and tutoring. According to this article by David William Cheever, "Education among the Greeks was peculiarly calculated for the development of the mind and the body in common. It is from this point of view that we wish to show the nature and preeminence of gymnastics in their times as compared with our own."
in that time, the gymnasium was the school. Lecturers would gather there and speak to their pupils. Aristotle was very well known for lecturing as he walked through the grounds and courtyards of the Lyceum. Being a public place, some of the time, it was a place for competing theorists to meet and debate. Or to simply lounge on a bench and enjoy one's own philosophical thoughts.
One of the most famous quads at an American University is that at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.
It was designed by Thomas Jefferson.
His renown (and the beauty of the quad) may have helped to inspire the tradition of quadrangles at many American Universities.
What campus is this? It's possible and maybe likely that you'll have more useful specific information on the architects of your campus and it's context if you focus on the specifics of your campus's project and not a general overview of the architecture of schools(especially in the US, where very few colleges have substantial buildings extant predating the 19th century and even fewer have a full campus as opposed to one or two buildings the campus later grew around).