Team Members

• Jean Underwood, Project Manager

• Jenny Fuqua, Structural Designer

Architect of Record

• BLDD Architects, Inc.

Charles City Middle School*

Charles City Community School District’s new middle school features an 86,250 s.f. addition to connect to the existing high school building. It consists of four learning studios (by grade level) with integrated special education spaces, a performance gym that seats 1,800 with locker rooms, commons featuring a tree house, media center, servery, and fitness trail. Learning studios were developed with teachers as designers by using Design Thinking and includes a suite of spaces to support multiple teaching and learning modalities. Students were engaged throughout the process and their voices can be seen in features like the tree house. This project was the start of a multi-phase masterplan to create a one-campus design for Grades 5-12 that would be on the leading edge of 21st century education.

NEEDS:

• Leading edge 21st century learning environments

• Connect to and share resources with high school

• Engagement of all stakeholders in the community

SOLUTIONS: 

• Use of Design Thinking process to engage all stakeholders and inform design

• Design was developed to accommodate future phases of work to complete the campus

• Exemplar tours and multiple meetings with community members, parents, business leaders, students, parents, teachers, and administration