MIUR's stalled school design competition draws IN/ARCH protest

The MIUR (Ministry of Education, Universities and Research) launched an international competition in 2016 for the design of 51 innovative school buildings across 16 Italian regions, backed by €350 million from the 'Buona Scuola' law. Architects and engineers submitted 1,238 proposals by the October 31 deadline. However, the process stalled after the first jury meeting, scheduled for November 8, 2016, was postponed indefinitely on November 7. No updates have been provided for nearly four months. The IN/ARCH (National Institute of Architecture), led by President Adolfo Guzzini, has sent an open letter to Minister Valeria Fedeli demanding transparency and action. Guzzini criticizes the MIUR for mismanagement, including multiple deadline extensions and failure to disclose the jury's composition or timeline. He argues that such conduct undermines trust in public design competitions, which are essential for quality architecture. IN/ARCH is prepared to launch a protest campaign to highlight the issue.