A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center wins Chicago Building Congress 2025 Merit Award

People holding umbrellas approach canopied entry of special education school

A special education prototype: Chicago Building Congress honors facility that supports neurodiverse students from 11 school districts

The Chicago Building Congress’s (CBC) annual Merit Awards competition honors the best Chicagoland construction projects from the past three years. Factors that judges consider include design creativity, construction quality, and the project’s impact on the community.

Competitors in this year’s Education category included major transformations at three high schools and a new special education facility. The latter, A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center in Burbank, Illinois, emerged as the winner.

Teacher helping child beneath a staircase nook. — Spaces throughout A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center are designed to bring comfort to special education students.

A.E.R.O., Legat, and IHC representative holding the 2025 CBC Merit Award. — Representatives of A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center, Legat Architects, and IHC Construction with the 2025 CBC Award of Merit at Morgan Manufucturing in Chicago’s West Loop. Left to right: Jessica Carlson (Legat), Rob Wroble (Legat), Robin Randall (Legat), Dr. James Gunnell (past executive director, A.E.R.O.), Evan Menk (Legat), Dr. Maggie Lesniak (past chief school business official, A.E.R.O.), Jim Leppert (IHC), Aileen Everitt (Legat), Tracy Templin (IHC)

A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center welcomes differently abled and behaviorally challenged students from 11 underserved Chicago-area school districts. The 150,000-square-foot facility, designed by Legat Architects and built by IHC Construction, serves students ages three to 22.

“Our research into the needs of neurodiverse students led to the creation of six guidelines that drove the design,” said Legat project manager Rob Wroble. “These principles play out in everything from the corridors’ uneven lighting patterns and rounded corners to the enclosed courtyards and the nooks carved beneath staircases.”

Teachers and students in a special needs classroom. — Three types of classrooms respond to the level of student needs. The multineeds classroom, designed for the most profoundly disabled students, offer harness systems that enable staff to move students to any part of the room.

Examples of how research informed the design of A.E.R.O. Therapeutic Center. — A research initiative explored the unique needs of neurodiverse students and resulted in six design guideposts.

The center also supports A.E.R.O.’s life skills development program. Spaces such as the Home Life Skills and Commercial Life Skills rooms enable students to gain independence through hands-on training in daily tasks and workplace preparation.

“The CBC Merit Award goes to the families and the 11 districts who made the commitment that these students would not be considered ‘other,’” said Robin Randall, director of learning at Legat. “This is a prototype of how districts can support special education.”

Watch the video below to see footage from the event including Randall talking about A.E.R.O.’s 20-year journey to the facility and what it means for the communities the organization serves.