Schools have always been a place of gathering for cities. In many ways, they provide a touchpoint for all of the micro communities living in a city, drawing them together into one larger whole.
A set of two new K-5 prototype schools for Rockford Public Schools in Rockford, Illinois, brings that sense of community to everything architecture-related. Designed by CannonDesign, the new public school puts architecture in the hands of its students and teachers; rather than designing for students, the design team designed the new school with students.
In an officeinsight interview, Robert Benson, Design Principal at CannonDesign, walked through the project’s genesis, and how this dynamic, power-to-the-kids school was executed so successfully.
“We had done some work with the school district prior to doing this project – smaller projects and renovations around the district, and they had five schools they wanted to close, combining those students into two central K-5 schools,” said Mr. Benson. “The five older schools were in a mix of styles, all different shapes and sizes, and most of them had acoustical issues. But the schools didn’t have anything that addressed the future – a new paradigm for learning.”
Two Schools, One Design
Rockford Public Schools had two options when choosing architects to design the new schools – select two separate firms to design each of the two schools, or select one firm to design both.
“In the end, they selected us to design both of the new schools, and we were really excited about that,” said Mr. Benson. “But, they also requested the two schools to be exactly identical. As architects, we were hesitant about that because we know that architecture should respond to the site, and each site is unique. The way a school’s entrance and exits work are really important to its function. And beyond that, designing around the shape of the land, and things like the building’s relation to the sun, is so important to its success.”
“But from a political standpoint, they wanted every kid in the community to have the same experience when they go to school,” Mr. Benson noted. “If they had had two uniquely designed schools, it’s likely that one would be seen as better in some way, and Rockford wanted to stay away from that mentality. We came around to see it from their point of view, and the benefits of making the two schools identical; but, we also asked them to find two sites that were identical in relation to the landscape and to the sun, so that we could actually execute two ‘identical’ schools.”
The buildings were built just one year apart, and Mr. Benson, noted that while it could possibly have been advantageous to build one and then use lessons learned to make improvements to the second school, that wasn’t the goal for the project. The first school, Cherry Valley Elementary School, was completed in August 2018, and the second, Constant Lane Elementary School, was finished in August 2019.
“We recognized the challenge of bringing two-to-three different schools together under one roof,” noted Mr. Benson. “Those schools all had their own identity, their own teachers and culture communities, and they all operated differently. We wanted to create a seamless transition for these separate communities into a brand-new combined space.”
A Rockford Town Hall
“During discovery meetings with Rockford school leadership, CannonDesign learned that the district holds “morning briefings” each day at their schools. This is a time designed to “help students, many of whom have disadvantageous, difficult and even traumatic home lives, release any negative energy they may hold, so they can best take in new information and collaborate with peers throughout the day.”
From project notes: “Recognizing the importance of these “morning briefings” with students, our team identified a need for more programmatic space to ensure they could occur and students could best thrive.”
The team designed a covered town hall at the center of the building, uniting the school’s gymnasium, cafeteria, art spaces, library and other public spaces while providing a home for the briefings. The town hall informs the entirety of the school, moving away from traditional school design features and creating a more open, inclusive, village design concept.
“The idea of a flexible space – of co-locating the gym, library, cafeteria, and travel pathways – isn’t exactly a new idea, but the way we presented it and designed it here was unorthodox. The school district was initially hesitant, but we worked with them and drew the heck out of it, and took the time to do workshops with all of the different groups who would be using the space.”
From project notes: “The central town hall is surrounded by grade-level learning communities specifically designed to the needs of the distinct age groupings: kindergarten, first and second, third and fourth and fifth grades. As a result of engaging students in the design process, the school moves away from traditional features – such as long corridors and fixed, immovable classroom objects that inhibit interaction and skill development – to embrace a more open village design concept. This concept creates hubs for connection throughout the building and enhances a sense of community. In the case of the Rockford K-5 prototype school, the whole is truly greater than the sum of its parts.”
Learning Communities > Classrooms
The design team developed a collection of classrooms called “learning communities.” Each school is what’s called a ‘four- strand’ school, meaning there are four classes per grade. Each grade’s four strands, or classes, share a collaborative space. And these collaborative spaces are connective, open and expansive.
“Adults need to move throughout the day, but kids need to move a lot more than adults do,” said Mr. Benson. “The design of these classrooms and the furnishings in them enable the teachers and the kids to move their furniture around and make their own settings and groups be what they need and want in the moment.”
The design team worked with Stuart Brodsky, Senior VP and K-12 Education Practice Leader at CannonDesign, to develop three distinct spatial organizations for the learning communities for post-kindergarten classes.
The first and second grade zones are located away from the main corridor, as much of their day can be accomplished more fully in their zone. The third grade collaborative space is located near the central corridor, as they have a little more freedom to move through additional spaces off the corridor. The fourth and fifth grade collaborative spaces are L-shaped and also located near the central corridors, allowing them to move between classrooms and other spaces at a higher rate – a design decision intended to create a more seamless transition to a middle school environment when they leave elementary.
CannonDesign conducted workshops with school leadership, teachers, parents, and kids at each grade level. At the kindergarten level, they spread out large white pieces of paper and let the kids show them what they think a school should look like, what they wanted their school to look like.
“There’s this quote from Picasso: “It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child,” Benson said. “We paid attention to those drawings and really used them as inspiration. These kindergarteners’ drawings were so creative and free – more free than the older kids.”
The workshops with older kids were helpful in other ways, offering more specific guidance. One girl drew a connected cafeteria and gym, explaining that it would be nice to be able to eat lunch and then play at the gym, moving between the spaces.
“People can see and feel those influences in the school we eventually designed.”
Kindergarten Influence
Special attention was paid toward designing the spaces for intended for the kindergarten level.
“The architecture engages children directly, at once both stimulating and educational,” notes the project description. “It inherently responds to the reality that entering kindergarten – in this case an 86,000 square foot building – can be a remarkably difficult transition and intimidating experience. Influenced by the drawings of children, the design team created unique kindergarten spaces that are visible from the street to help eliminate any intimidation. Each space has unique geometric windows with different colors that break the scale of the school down to the one room schoolhouse, allowing kindergarten students to understand their space in the larger community. The windows, installed near floor level, are irresistible to the kindergartners, beckoning them to engage with the world around them.”
Mimicking the shaped windows, geometric shaped cutouts on the interior beckon kids to pop into and play around inside.
“When you can touch the architecture like that, when something is designed just for you, that communicates something to you as a little kid,” said Mr. Benson. “It’s meaningful.”
From project notes: “This geometric strategy extends to other spaces throughout the building where students learn while playing. With integrated furniture, the students learn mass and void relationships in the physical world. This spatial reasoning is essential for their development. In the learning communities, the soft, moveable furniture is designed to be pushed, pulled, and repositioned any way the students desire. Their collaboration, community, and experience is remade by them each day.”
In the town hall, giant shapes on the floor correspond with furnishings to match. When kids come to school in the morning and have breakfast, they gravitate to the shapes on the floor. The design brings children together in a playful, yet structured way.
Evidence-based Color, Lighting and Acoustics
Throughout the design process, CannonDesign used research and evidence-based design principals specific to young children.
“Primary colors are well known to stimulate children’s brains, and we used them for that reason, but the colors also help them understand which space is theirs. Moving from preschool to a full day of kindergarten is a big jump, and we wanted to be sensitive to that and design for it using all the tools we have.”
Designing for acoustics within school walls was a top concern.
“There’s an old-school mentality that dictates that school is a quiet place, and that children must be quiet there,” said Mr. Benson. “But kids often aren’t quiet, and their space shouldn’t require them to act a way that is counter to what’s natural. Now, it’s about harnessing that positive energy that comes from ‘noise.’”
Benson continued, “How do you accommodate energy while managing distraction? Part of that is the teachers running their classes, and the other part of the equation is the building itself. The teachers have a range of spaces that give them the ability to create a balance that works for them.”
“The cafeterias we toured with them were extremely loud, and they were quite small – basically large enough to fit the tables and chairs needed for the students. We worked with an acoustic engineer to convert noise from being a distraction into just great energy.”
Gorgeous natural daylighting can be found around every corner.
“The town hall has two very long window walls, and it almost feels as if you are outside. Even on a cloudy day, the way we designed this building gathers light and brings it to the interior in a really beautiful way.”
Architecture for Rockford
“The architecture of the whole is designed to reflect the larger community of Rockford, Illinois. Drawing on the community’s agrarian and industrial roots, the 86,000 square foot facility is broken down into smaller, identifiable masses, reflecting the students’ understanding of architecture and place. Looking at both the macro (history, community, culture) and the micro (postures, cognitive development, learning styles) the design team synthesized a new prototype for both the students and the community.”
Benson continued the sentiment: “When doing a public school, efficiency and sensitivity to all stakeholders is really important,” said Benson. “You want to be a good steward with the public’s money. Both of the buildings were completed under budget, and we’re very proud of that. We got a lot of building, and a lot of great value for Rockford.”
“We delivered a very sophisticated design, something that can stand on its own, for little kids and designed with little kids. We spent a lot of time thinking through the balance of safety with transparency and maintaining a strong community.”
