COMPTON, Calif.—The Compton Unified School District Board of Trustees unanimously selected DLR Group to design the new Centennial High School. In a monumental decision for the district, DLR Group’s design was selected from a field of six submissions in a design competition for the new high school.

The announcement is a continuation of the relationship that DLR Group and CUSD share. Centennial High School will begin construction following the completion of Compton High School, which also features DLR Group’s design and scheduled to be completed in January 2025. The two historic projects reinforce CUSD’s commitment to provide exemplary educational facilities for its students and community.

“This signifies a continued fulfillment of the educational excellence for Compton Unified School District that we started seven years ago with Compton High School,” says DLR Group Principal and K-12 Education Leader Jesse Miller, AIA, DBIA. “These two, brand-new high schools coming online shine a light on the commitment the community and district have made so that their scholars have every opportunity to excel in the ever-changing world.”

Compton is one of the oldest and most notable incorporated cities in Los Angeles County. The district serves approximately 20,000 students in 37 schools. Centennial High School is one of three comprehensive high schools in the district and has an enrollment of approximately 1000 students.

DLR Group’s integrated design team will work with students, staff, and community stakeholder groups to design a campus that celebrates its rich history while incorporating flexible learning environments that support the district’s vision of providing an innovative educational experience.

“We’re excited to select DLR Group for the design of the new Centennial High School,” says CUSD Board President Denzell Perry. “They presented a bold, aspirational, and modern design that complements the look of the new Compton High School, while capturing the history and legacy of Centennial. This project signifies the Compton Unified Board of Trustees’ long-term vision and commitment to our district and community, creating state-of-the-art new schools that will elevate our scholars and city to all-new levels.”

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ALEXANDRIA, Va.—International development and construction firm Skanska has finished up its work on the new Douglas MacArthur Elementary School, the first net zero-ready school for the Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) system, located just across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital.

The 150,000-square-foot school is located on the same site as a previously existing 65,000-square-foot school. The new Douglas MacArthur Elementary School will be home to students ranging from pre-K to 5th grade.

Inside, Douglas MacArthur Elementary School hosts art and music rooms as well as modern classrooms. The exterior features newly laid turf fields, basketball courts, playgrounds as well as a student drop-off area. Furthermore, locating the school’s parking underground increases the amount of recreational area on the outside—a premium in the DMV—while simultaneously fashioning even more green space to surround the new building.

The net-zero energy model means that the power generated for the school itself will be matched by the energy actually used by the facility. These types of schools have been shown to consume significantly less energy as opposed to those that rely on a more traditional power-needs structure.

Among the net-zero design features being utilized at Douglas MacArthur Elementary School are a geothermal system beneath the artificial athletic field turn, which uses the earth’s natural ability to cool or heat a building. Additionally, the school’s bathrooms will utilize low-flush toilets and low-output sinks. The HVAC system takes advantage of natural sunlight and ventilation to assist with airflow and temperature regulation as well.

Skanska worked at Douglas MacArthur Elementary School in association with architect of record DLR Group to realize the educational project.

“Skanska is a leader in sustainable construction, and it is our privilege to partner with ACPS to deliver this modern and energy efficient building to the Alexandria community,” Dale Kopnitsky, general manager and executive vice president responsible for Skanska’s Washington, D.C., building operations, said of the project. “The impact of this project will not only provide operational cost savings to the school district but create a healthier space for students to learn and thrive.”

Skanska’s other educational construction projects in the greater Washington, D.C., area include George Mason University’s Life Sciences and Engineering Building in Prince William County. The company has also built VHC Health’s Outpatient Pavilion in Arlington; 17xM, an 11-story, 334,000-square-foot office building in Washington; OZMA, a 12-story, mixed-use development with 275 luxury apartments in Washington; 3901 Fairfax, a 190,000-square-foot nine-story office building in Arlington; and Heming, a 28-story, 410-unit luxury apartment building in Tysons.

Skanska continues to innovate in terms of sustainable construction and development. The firm was founded more than 135 years ago, and operates in Scandinavia, greater Europe and the United States. Their U.S. operations are headquartered in New York, and the firm hosts 29 total offices around the country.

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SOMERTON, Ariz.―General contracting firm McCarthy Building Companies has delivered for the Yuma Union High School District (YUHSD) the new Somerton High School, now welcoming its inaugural class. The $68 million project, which has been planned since 2019, is the seventh high school for the YUHSD. Prior to this project, Somerton was the largest city in the Grand Canyon State without its own high school.

As designed by DLR Group, Somerton High School’s campus puts particular focus on classrooms for career and technical education (CTE) programs such as welding, sports medicine, engineering, robotics, law enforcement and culinary arts. Other career-preparation courses may be added in the future, the school announced.

DLR Group’s design also incorporates Somerton’s proximity to the Colorado River Delta, whose alluvial system is part of a mechanism that provides water throughout the Southwest. The campus offers a shaded outdoor courtyard—a forward-thinking notion in this very hot region—at the heart of the campus that is meant to call to mind the river system.

The 150,000-square-foot, four-building campus is home to nearly 2,000 students. In addition to classrooms, Somerton’s campus houses a 358-seat cafeteria as well as 432 outdoor dining seats and a snack bar. A black box-style theater, media center, choir room, band room, special educational classrooms and laboratory classrooms are all on offer.

The high school’s auxiliary gym seats 193 people, and also has a weight training room. Outdoors, the football stadium can seat 500 spectators; there is also a baseball field, softball field and tennis courts.

Ongoing supply chain issues addressed by McCarthy personnel included replacing back-order steel tresses with treated wooden trusses instead in some areas—while moving the installation of those steel tresses that did arrive until much later in the schedule for the cafeteria and media center. Thus the project schedule was maintained without delays.

“The design for this high school was inspired by the strong agricultural community in Somerton as well as the nationally recognized CTE programs at YUHSD,” Carmen Wyckoff, DLR Group principal and K-12 education leader, said of Somerton’s completion. “This facility will have an immediate impact on the legacy the Somerton High students will leave in their community.”

Added John Kovesdy, project manager with McCarthy Building Companies: “We had our challenges throughout the project, but nothing was going to stop the team from opening Somerton High School. We all knew how important it is to our community.

“We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to help create this landmark in Somerton.”

McCarthy and DLR Group’s partners included Arizona Verde Fire Protection, Delta Diversified Enterprises, Yuma Valley Contractors and Arizona Window Coverings.

“The realization of Somerton High School is an incredible mix of joy, pride and gratitude,” YUHSD Superintendent Tim Brienza said of the school construction completion. “Decades after being discussed, the community has this incredible facility to provide the backdrop of graduating EVERY student college, career and community prepared.”

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MENIFEE, Calif.—C.W. Driver Companies is now at work on the $54.5 million Menifee Union School District Elementary School #15. The K-5 school’s construction will take place over 46 acres, with the campus designed in a horseshoe shape envisioned by DLR Group | BakerNowicki.

The 75,000-square-foot Riverside County school will be home to nearly two dozen classrooms as well as a dedicated kindergarten building. In addition, the new school will feature a modern library and information center, administration area, cafeteria as well as a large multipurpose room with a state-of-the-art audiovisual system.

On the exterior, the school will offer playgrounds, track fields, pickup/dropoff area, as well as a parking lot for over 100 vehicles and various spaces devoted to gatherings as well. Because of the extensive nature of the redesign of the parcel of land, street renovations to the adjoining Wickerd Road are also necessary.

When the school comes online in July 2024, it will be able to host approximately 600 students, according to estimates from the general contractor and designers.

“This is the second school we’ve worked on for the Menifee Union School District, with Menifee Valley Middle School being the first,” Andy Feth, project executive at C.W. Driver Companies, said in a statement in connection with the recent groundbreaking. “In that instance, it was an intricate expansion of an existing campus, while this is a completely new build from the ground up.”

In a subsequent statement emailed to School Construction News, C.W. Driver personnel said that to keep the project moving along in a timely fashion, the general contractor had to get creative with its various partners considering the construction work experienced a rather sizable budget overrun.

“Much of the savings were realized during the short window between bid opening and award, which is a testament to the overall project team’s determination and hard work,” said Eric Metzger, senior project manager for C.W. Driver.

Elsewhere in the Golden State, C.W. Driver’s education-related CV of K-12 projects includes their work at San Diego USD’s Nipaquay Elementary School, Grossmont UHSD’s El Capitan High School Events Center, San Dieguito UHSD’s Torrey Pines HS Modernization and Chino Valley USD’s New K-8 The Preserve II School. The firm boasts an educational portfolio of over 150 projects in its century-plus of existence.

C.W. Driver was founded in 1919, and offers expertise in the school construction sector entailing such expertise as construction management.

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SAN FRANCISCO—Architecture firm DLR Group and general contractor McCarthy Building Companies have been hired by the San Francisco Unified School District to build a new school in the city’s bustling Mission Bay neighborhood.

The school will encompass 82,000 square feet of educational space on a 2.5-acre parcel of land. The school will eventually be home to 600 preK-5 grade school students, a STEM-focused learning laboratory as well as office space for SFUSD personnel. DLR’s design plan calls for ground-floor learning space that will connect directly to the outdoors to bring learning out of the classroom itself. The second and third floors will feature learning studios as well as collaborative learning spaces and breakout rooms. Meanwhile, the fourth floor will host a learning lab that focuses specifically on guiding high school students to consider potential career options in the STEM fields.

In a recent release from McCarthy, the firm’s vice president, Jack Carter, said that the addition of the new school was necessary as the Mission Bay area of the city has continued its upward swing in development.

“The addition of this vital piece of infrastructure will not only be a cornerstone within Mission Bay but also allows San Francisco Unified School District the opportunity to develop a school from the ground up to provide for today’s and future students,” he said.

Added DLR Group Principal Christopher McGiff-Brown: “The Mission Bay School will become the nucleus of community life within this vibrant neighborhood. Our team’s design solution expresses the joy of learning with dynamic architecture to create a vivid and welcoming campus for all users.”

Construction is scheduled to commence sometime this year, with the school opening its doors in 2025.

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CORVALIS, Ore.—After the Corvallis School District adopted its “Innovation Team” of educators and others to envision what the future of its schools might look like, ideas have been put into practice, perhaps most notably at Garfield Elementary School, the first of the district’s schools to experience such a renovation.

Designer DLR Group worked with general contractor Fortis Construction Inc. at Garfield, which first opened for students in 1923. The school was named in honor of President James Garfield, the 20th American president and the second to be assassinated while in office. In the 21st century the school operates as a dual-language educational institute, immersing students not only in English but also Spanish.

DLR’s job at Garfield entailed building out new classrooms and updating earlier facilities there as well.

According to the school district, renovations at Garfield included six new classrooms, two of which are devoted specifically to art and science. Music rooms and new collaborative learning areas were also part of the master plan for the school. The designers and contractor also had to envision the existing classrooms to make them amenable to modern learning necessities. Furthermore, the plumbing, electrical and mechanics all had to be upgraded, in addition to safety improvements made around the school.

The renovations allowed the school to increase its overall footprint from 46,000 to 62,000 square feet.

DLR’s team was first invited to discuss changes to the school during several meetings with the Corvallis School District. In their news release, Principal Nancy Davila-Williams said that collaboration was key to the project’s success right from the beginning.

“I appreciated looking around the table and seeing familiar faces of Garfield families and also new faces of community members and school neighbors,” she said. “The architects asked questions, and our answers were really heard. We had an opportunity to engage in conversation with each other, and we were able to listen to each other’s ideas and perspectives. The design team really did get input from all the players who would be impacted by the projects.”

Added art teacher Jerry Bryan: “Everything we talked about for the art and science classroom happened.”

In an email sent to School Construction News, DLR Group project manager Elizabeth Delorme, AIA and LEED Green Associate, said that reconfiguring Garfield’s design allowed for students to experience “a warm, welcoming, and inclusive environment.”

“The design responds to the school’s culturally diverse student population by creating a strong sense of community and fosters direct connections to nature,” she said.

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WASHINGTON, D.C.—Architectural firm DLR Group recently hosted officials from the Maury Elementary School in the nation’s capital to behold the changes that the firm made to the school.

Because the school was originally constructed on Capitol Hill in 1886, it was in need of refurbishment, and the designers sought to give it a more modern look to blend in with the more familiar nearby buildings. The $42 million renovation project entailed 70,000 square feet of educational space. The work was funded via a campaign set forth by the District of Columbia Public Schools’ capital improvements program.

Among DLR’s renovations was fashioning a new learning environment that utilized glass elements in the design motif for its “discovery commons.” This was meant to act as a metaphorical bridge between the older design elements and those that DLR has since installed—and act as a literal bridge between exterior and interior elements too.

DLR also upgraded the elementary school’s music and art classrooms, science labs and various other learning spaces. The redesign has redirected the flow of people flow through the school better so that students, teachers and staff can get from one area to the next much faster. The redesigned learning spaces are also meant to encourage collaboration rather than solitary learning.

General contractor MCN Build worked with DLR to modernize the HVAC system, among other work.

The renovated school will now be able to host some 450 students, marking an upgrade over its previous capacity of approximately 360.

In a recent statement, DLR Group Principal Sarah Woodhead said that her firm worked to ensure that communal spaces were optimized for both learning and playing.

“The creative design of child-scale places, biophilic materials, and indoor-outdoor connections creates a unique educational environment that inspires, attracts, and sparks children’s love of learning,” stated Woodhead.

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BOYS TOWN, Neb.—A groundbreaking ceremony was held in early September for the construction commencement for a new high school facility in Boys Town, a small village located on the western edge of Omaha’s suburbs. The new Boys Town High School, which is meant to replace an older educational building that had stood on that same ground since 1948, will bring under one roof all students from the current high school as well as the nearby Wegner School buildings.

The $30 million, three-story school will offer 110,000 square feet of educational space to replace a facility that was in dire need of modernizing; thus the decision was made to demolish the older school and start fresh. Even with various repairs and renovations over the many decades since its construction, the older high school could not continue to operate up to what is needed for ongoing education. Furthermore, the National Board of Trustees determined that it would actually be more feasible to demolish the older building and begin anew rather than renovate yet again.

According to the Omaha World-Herald, the village of Boys Town was founded in 1917 by Rev. Edward J. Flanagan, who dreamed of a place dedicated to encouraging and educating at-risk young men. Since then, the school in the village—and others like it—have continued Flanagan’s mission to reach the community’s neediest through educational efforts.

The older school building itself was designed by vaunted architect Leo A. Daly. DLR Group is designing the new building, which will be built by general contractor MCL.

“This new education center will help Boys Town continue to provide a safe and inspiring learning experience for our students,” Father Steven Boes, Boys Town’s national executive director, said in a recent statement. “We continue to make improvements on our campus as the needs of our children change, and we remain committed to ensuring that all our youth receive fair and equal educational opportunities.”

Added Rod Kempkes, the chief executive officer at Boys Town: “Many Boys Town youth have come from challenging environments and never had the opportunity to attend a well-resourced school where they can receive a quality education. Our school is an active part of care, treatment and behavioral research that are foundational to Boys Town programs used at schools throughout the country.”

According to information recently released by Boys Town, over 80 percent of students who come to the school show significant improvement in both academic performance and in behavior modification. Furthermore, 97 percent of their students graduate and/or continue educating themselves after leaving Boys Town.

The new school building is expected to be ready in time for the fall 2023 school term, as reported by the Omaha World-Herald.

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Yucaipa and torrance, Calif.—DLR Group was recently selected to provide design services for two higher education campuses in Southern California. The two replacement projects include new performing arts facilities at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, and El Camino College in Torrance.

DLR Group’s design for a new performing arts center at Crafton Hills College will provide a modern venue for educational spaces, as well as a state-of-the-art auditorium and stage facility to better meet the needs of students and the surrounding community. The auditorium will include a lobby and outdoor terrace, a 300-seat auditorium with an orchestra pit, black box theater, and backstage facilities such as dressing rooms, green room, offices, storage, wood shop, and costume shop. The complex will be equipped with next-generation theater technology and acoustics and serve a variety of events for music and student performances.

The project will target LEED Gold Certification and net-zero energy use to become an innovative case study for sustainability in the arts. Crafton Hills College is part of the San Bernardino Community College District.

At El Camino College, DLR Group’s design for a new music and theater building will continue the strong tradition of the arts on campus by creating new opportunities for collaboration and growth in the program. Currently more than 65 years old, the existing music building is limited in the technology, systems, and infrastructure to support modern music and theatre instructional programs.

DLR Group is designing a transformative new facility that provides students with the latest amenities and technology for music and theater needs, while also creating an upgraded audience experience for members of the community. The facility will house a proscenium theater, recital hall, black box studio theater, and an array of performance support, student collaboration spaces, and practice rooms. The design will embrace the campus master plan by providing students with connections to outdoor spaces, informal gathering areas, and create new transparency to arts education by exposing the practice and rehearsal spaces to the campus and community. A common outdoor courtyard will serve as a gathering spot for students and an informal outdoor performance stage to showcase the talent of the program to the broader campus. The new building will be a leader in sustainability by capturing daylighting and views and responding directly to user wellness, while minimizing energy use as an example project on campus.

“DLR Group delivers award-winning performing arts designs that meet the specific needs of each institution and user group,” said DLR Group Principal Leigh Anne Jones, AIA. “We are thrilled to partner with Crafton Hills College and El Camino College to enhance their facilities and enrich the experience for performing arts and music students for many generations to come.”

Construction on the Crafton Hills College project is scheduled to begin May 2022 with an estimated completion date of March 2024. It is funded through state and local monies, including the voter approved Measure CC.

The El Camino project is scheduled to begin construction in August 2022 with an estimated completion date of August 2024. It is funded through state and local monies, including the voter approved Measure E. The cost of these projects has not yet been disclosed.

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WADDELL, Ariz.—DLR Group, a firm providing architecture, engineering, planning, and interior design, recently received an Award of Merit from the American Institute of Architects for its design of Canyon View High School in Waddell.

This prestigious national award honors innovative designs that inspire learners, educators, administrators, and communities and enhance modern pedagogy.

Completed in 2018, Canyon View High School spans 237,120 square feet for its 2,000 students and consists of flexible teaching environments reinforced by digital platforms for learning.

“Canyon View High School is a special campus,” said DLR Group Senior Principal Pam Loeffelman, FAIA, in a statement.

“The design is the framework that allows the district to blur the lines between ages and abilities and to deliver a truly one-of-a-kind learning experience for students and educators. DLR Group is especially honored to be recognized by our peers for design excellence that positively impacts student success.”

During the award review process, jurors noted, “the project hits on equity, health, and accessibility. Every indoor-outdoor space is a place for socializing, movement, gathering, performing, and creating as a community of learners.”

DLR Group noted that in its design, ownership of the classroom is transferred to the collective school, allowing faculty to rotate through learning spaces weekly and affording students the ability to explore academic interests and curriculum. Prior to occupying the campus, DLR Group implemented its BOLD (Bridging Organization Learning and Design) service, which is a facility activation process. This change effort led to universal buy-in to a vision for the campus, resulting in a shift in teaching practices that align with the physical environment.

To achieve this, DLR Group’s design emphasizes spatial flexibility and sustainability as primary means of fulfilling the district’s goals.

The new $75.6 million high school offers the opportunity to strengthen relationships, foster multiple pedagogies for individualized learning opportunities, and nurtures a culture that is student-focused and faculty-guided. Classes have the flexibility to be held in spaces designed to suit the learning of the moment and adjust when necessary.

“The new facility enables innovation and measurable advancements in teaching and learning. These spaces allow teachers to advance their professional skills, and students to examine coursework more deeply to develop collaborative opportunity with peers globally,” said Dr. Dennis Runyan, superintendent, Agua Fria Union High School District, in a statement.

Chasse Building Team Inc. was the general contractor on this impressive project.

DLR Group and Canyon View High School have also received additional industry and educational accolades since the campus opened in 2018. Honors include the coveted James D. MacConnell Award by the Association for Learning Environments in 2019, and design and research awards through the AIA Arizona chapter.

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