Design Matters in the Desert

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — When designing a school, architects think about the students inside, and in the California desert, they also are concerned with the weather outside. Private school, Marywood-Palm Valley School in Rancho Mirage, right outside of Palm Desert, Calif., is currently building a new learning center for its high school students.

The 14,000-square-foot Upper School building broke ground in April and is slated for completion by spring 2014. Palm Desert-based architecture firm, Alfred H. Cook Architects is designing the environmentally friendly center and utilizing local materials as well as optimizing the school’s location to reduce energy costs by designing the school to be solar-ready.

“This new school will be extremely energy-efficient and esthetically appealing,” said Cook in a statement. “Extensive planning has gone into making it environmentally friendly. The contemporary, modern look of the building will enhance the campus as well as blend in with an emphasis on desert style.”

The design will also feature traditional desert exteriors including natural desert tones as well as the region’s coveted palm trees lining the surrounding area. Along with the exterior components, Alfred Cook, principal at Alfred H. Cook Architects, explained that the inside of the school is guided by technology and energy efficiency.

“Each classroom has control of their own air conditioning unit, so if one unit goes down it doesn’t affect the entire building,” he explained.

The school will also be equipped with insulation beyond what is required by building codes and include double-pane windows, which are essential in naturally keeping the building at cooler temperatures during the heat.

The building is also being designed with SMART board technology — giving students at the new school modern and state-of-the-art classrooms that combine hands-on learning with technology. The SMART boards serve as an interactive white board that uses touch detection for user input, just like a tablet or a smartphone.

The $3.5 million project is hoping to guide students on a continued path of success, as currently 100 percent of Marywood-Palm Valley School graduates qualify for four-year colleges.

The learning center will feature seven classrooms, a college counseling office, an Upper School office and a student lounge/study area.

Along with the new Upper School, the existing middle school facility will also be renovated to include new carpeting and fresh paint, a build-out of a dedicated conference room and an enlarged admissions area for visiting families.

In under to fund the Upper School project, administrators launched the Campaign for Tomorrow that intends to raise the entire project cost — the school has raised $2 million to date.