Page 17 - Winter_2020

Outdoor learning garden between classroom wings of the Murch Elementary School.

The addition to the
Murch Elementary School.
Photos © Ken Wyner, Ken Wyner Photography New, partially below-grade cafeteria with rooftop play area in the foreground, and the historic school building in the right background.
If in the earliest days of the DC school modernization
Project: Murch Elementary School Renovation campaign the goals were modest—like keep the rain out and
and Addition,
4810 36th Street, NW, Washington, DC the heat on—today’s expectations for 21st-century schools
are far higher. In ways not contemplated 20 years ago, city
Architects of Record: R. McGhee & Associates school buildings are expected to provide flexible learning
Associate Architects: Hord Coplan Macht environments, accommodate a variety of pedagogical
Landscape Architects: Jordan Honeyman Landscape Architecture approaches, house expanded student support services, and
Structural Engineers: SK&A Structural Engineers
MEP Engineers: Setty & Associates International deliver healthy, highly efficient, and cost-saving sustainable
Civil/Geotechnical Engineers: CDDI LLC design. And now in a further evolution and in the wake of
Archaeological Consultants: EHT Traceries Inc. COVID-19, school architects are already thinking about design
Technology Consultants: Educational Systems Planning for resiliency, safety, and well-being in new ways.
Acoustical Consultants: Acoustical Design Collaborative LTD Two recent additions to the long list of overhauled public
Transportation Planners: Gorove-Slade Associates Inc. schools, Benjamin Murch Elementary School and Kimball
Cost Estimators: TCT Cost Consultants LLC
Kitchen Consultants: Nyikos Associates Inc. Elementary School, reflect the high-quality design and
LEED Consultants: Doo Consulting customized learning environments that have become hallmarks
General Contractor: MCN Build of the city’s modernization campaign.

SCHOOLS ON A MISSION 15