Mead Elementary School

Nestled in a growing bedroom community along a major interstate, the new 70,000 SF Mead Elementary School serves Pre-K through grade 5, transforming the campus with new play areas, fields, and entry plaza. The school serves 650 students and an expanded Special Needs program while incorporating program strategies to support the “All-School Movement Program.” A learning methodology that “creates a lifelong relationship with fitness while also employing current research that shows how movement prepares the brain for learning,” the design and adjacencies of indoor and outdoor spaces create experiences that support continuous student movement and learning.

The classrooms currently designated for 1st through 5th grade are designed to be utilized by any grade level depending on the District’s need from year-to-year. The Art and Makerspace have an industrial aesthetic allowing for ease of maintenance and durability of finishes, promoting expressive creativity, and embracing enthusiastic exploration. Flexibility is key for the teaching staff and the Breakout and Small Group spaces assigned to each grade have provided teachers with adaptability to facilitate socially-distanced learning, but also to accommodate focused group work. Multiple exterior zones are well suited for outdoor learning.

Visible from the highway exit as the “big red barn”, the elementary school has become a cherished landmark in the community. The design aesthetic echoes the stakeholders’ desire for the building to reference Mead’s history, community, and context; the school’s forms and color palette creates a dialogue with the community while creating a sense of play and whimsy for children. Light, color and form become the core traits in Mead’s new dynamic learning environment. Ample windows allow daylight to fill interior spaces, creating bright and well-ventilated spaces.