Page 59 - 256149_ArchDC_Winter 2021

height ceilings in common areas. The interior layout a variety of purposes. Curtain-wall glass brings the
features several flexible spaces tailored to teens, outside in, while a terrace running the full length of
including project areas with comfortable seating and the building, complete with stadium-style seating
massive dry-erase boards that allow the students overlooking the field, lures students out. Thanks in
to escape the confines of a tiny classroom desk. part to a ventilation system providing ample outdoor
“They wanted to have choice—to be anywhere, to do air, combined with the flexible interior layouts which
anything, at any moment,” said Robinson. The two allowed for social distancing, the school was able to
innovation labs, which feature several large, sturdy, remain open during much of the COVID-19 pandemic.
wood-topped workstations, resemble artists’ studios Siting the Peterson Middle School beside the
or woodworking shops and provide students with Upper School had several programmatic advantages
the space to safely tackle creative, hands-on projects. but posed significant design challenges. The Upper
Anticipating boisterous lunchtime and assembly School shares its music room and gym with the middle
crowds, the design team worked diligently to fine-tune school, with students traversing a newly laid pathway
the building’s acoustics. from building to building. This access also opened
“Not too many materials, keeping it simple,” up opportunities for seventh and eighth graders to
explained Robinson of the team’s design approach. take some higher-level classes, including foreign
Materials like the corrugated metal, polished concrete, languages, in the high school. The proximity of the
and wood that are used throughout the building have buildings, however, required rethinking the complex
the dual benefit of being cost-effective and producing a choreography of school drop off—no easy feat. The
warmed-up industrial feel. Designers selectively used resulting transformation “changed completely the way
imitation-wood aluminum in inconspicuous areas cars access the site,” said Robinson.
to save additional costs while mimicking the natural One would be hard-pressed to find a client harder
wood used elsewhere in the building. to please than a group of 13-year-olds, but listening
The design also reflects contemporary expectations closely to the opinions of students, parents, and
regarding occupants’ health and wellbeing. Clerestory faculty equipped the design team to realize a finished
windows harvest ample natural sunlight, and silk- project that meets every need, and even fulfilled a few
screened window filters mellow its midday brightness. unexpected requests. Originally, the faculty and design
Soft, adjustable lighting inside the building allows team had no plan to incorporate a playground at the
teachers and students to adapt classroom lighting for middle school, figuring the teens would want to leave

Project Area with secondary staircase to second-floor classrooms.

TEENAGE DREAM 57