Maryland School Completed on Tight Schedule

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LAUREL, Md. — Monarch Global Academy Contract School opened in October 2014, bringing the globally minded International Baccalaureate curriculum to nearly 500 students. The school is expected to accept as many as 740 students by the fall 2015 semester and was built to alleviate overcrowding at Maryland City, Brock Bridge and Jessup elementary schools, which had been forced to rely on portable classrooms.

"We are very excited to be able to bring this unique and enriched learning experience in a brand new school building to children in Laurel," Children’s Guild President and CEO Andrew Ross said in a statement announcing the October 2013 groundbreaking.

The new academy is the result of a partnership between Baltimore-based nonprofit The Children’s Guild and Anne Arundel County Public Schools, and is the county’s first contract institution. While students do not pay tuition to attend Monarch Global Academy, it’s not a public school in the traditional sense. The K-8 school operates using the International Baccalaureate curriculum at the elementary level, and centers on informational technology with an international focus in the upper grades.

In addition to standard classrooms and office spaces, the school, which sits on an 8.5-acre site, includes a gymnasium, cafeteria and fully equipped kitchen. In keeping with the academy’s global theme, a 30-foot electronic globe serves as the focal point of the main entryway. Lit from below and connected to a computer, this unique educational tool allows teachers to track civilizations, global data and weather patterns.

Designed by SEI Architects of Rockville, Md. and constructed by Memphis, Tenn.-based Varco Pruden Builder and Steel Building Specialists Inc. of Halethorpe, Md., the colorful school spans 69,020 square feet. The modern, two-story structure features a red and white exterior with floor-to-ceiling windows that allow natural light to fill the space. The distinctive blue-toned roof was constructed using a weather-tight metal system.

Metal was used extensively throughout the academy for both cost efficiency purposes and to help the construction team meet the project’s completion date. Varco Pruden integrated its Continuous Beam framing system and soffit panels, as well as its SSR Standing Seam Roof System, into the design. The company’s TuffWall and ThermalClad products provided added exterior insulation.

“There is a critical need to modernize school facilities to meet current health, safety and educational standards,” said Gary Cearfoss, president of Steel Building Specialists Inc., in a statement. “Our focus during the construction of this project was to ensure that we met those standards.”

“Our biggest challenge during this project was the tight time schedule,” Cearfoss continued. “The project needed to be completed before the start of the 2014-2015 school year. Due to numerous extraneous variables, we were not able to begin work on the project until October 2013, leaving only 10 months for construction. However, through hard work and perseverance on behalf of our site supervisor and subcontractors we were able to complete construction on schedule before the start of the new school year.”