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Reimagining The Situation Room Experience: An Educator-Ready Simulation
The Challenge: In 1961, President John F. Kennedy created a secure communications hub for real-time crisis management called the White House Situation Room. Used by nine presidents, it shaped decisions that still affect us today. In 2006, the two key rooms, the Main Conference Room and the Secure Video Transmission Site, were installed at the George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan Presidential Libraries.
The Situation Room Experience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum puts visitors in the middle of high-stakes decision making. The original install, first led by Wishcraft Simulations and later updated by Cudzu Creative, generated excitement but relied on disconnected systems and fixed scenarios that were hard to manage and update. The library’s leaders asked DI to upgrade the technology so it was simple for the staff to run as well as expanding the scenarios for the student visitors, corporate teams and other audiences. The goal was a flexible platform that kept the energy of the White House crisis simulation while improving the tech experience.
Year
2022Location
Simi Valley, CaliforniaPartners
Cudzu Creative
Crafting the Solution: The Situation Room Experience is a hyper-realistic, tech-forward simulation where visitors must work together to strategize, de-escalate and facilitate communication amidst a high-stakes government crisis such as a presidential assassination attempt or large-scale wildfire. DI designed and integrated a custom authoring and control system so the guides can build, edit and route crisis scenarios across the room’s media surfaces, tablets and other communication tools.
The platform supports up to 60 players with role-specific dashboards that deliver intel, communications and decision prompts to cabinet-level leaders, agency officials and media roles. The overhaul replaces a rigid, hard-to-maintain setup with cohesive software and hardware solutions that is intuitive for guides and also resilient for heavy-use.
The simulation opens the door to hybrid and remote participation through web-based control, extending the program beyond the walls as needed. The result is a streamlined, high-energy simulation that helps the library deliver immersive civic learning experiences.
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Carole Hollman
Practice Director - Cultural
With over 13 years of experience in the museum design/build world, Carole has successfully led and facilitated large-scale exhibit and interpretive projects of national importance around the country for over a decade. Carole’s passion... more about Carole Hollman
