Haley Kell

NARRATIVE:

An $85 M bond issue passed in April 2016 for the complete gut renovation of the two-story existing Ladue Horton Watkins High School. It also allowed for two building additions and programming reconfiguration to accommodate the 10 municipalities and more than 1,200 students it serves. The existing campus had been added on to and renovated multiple times, resulting in poor wayfinding, disconnected departments, and make-shift solutions. The goals of the project would be to create a high school that is unified and would support their vision of a new STEAM focused curriculum and the growth of the district. 

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A programming study concluded that their current 44,000 SF West Wing would be demolished to accommodate a new three-story STEAM focused West Addition and a new single-story Music Addition. The main administrative office, counseling offices and nurse’s suite were relocated to the front of the building, in addition to creating a secure vestibule and new check-in process for visitors and parents.  Existing classroom walls were adjusted to accommodate wider hallways and larger rooms.  English and Social Studies were programmed for the renovated classrooms.  Art classrooms and a gallery space were centrally located, allowing for prominent display locations in commons areas. A breezeway connection was added to divide the existing courtyard and provide better circulation between buildings. One half of the courtyard serves as additional classroom space for drawing and painting rooms. Doors were added that directly open into the space. The other half of the courtyard, adjacent to a new quick serve Cafe and the main Cafeteria, provides additional dining and student gathering spaces.

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The existing library was transformed into a large Multipurpose room. Its adjacency to the existing cafeteria solved the school's overcrowded lunch periods. The new Library Media Center was relocated to the STEAM focused West Addition, along with a state-of-the art Teleconference room, modeled after collegiate-like environments. The Library Media Center is centrally located in the addition and serves as a technology hub. It features two additional classroom spaces, group study booths, independent study carrels, and a makerspace on the mezzanine. 

 

The addition also contains the new Aero-Space Engineering, Dirty Build, and Computer Science labs of the Project-Lead-The-Way curriculum expansion.  Other specialty classrooms include a Broadcast Studio with a green screen, Drafting, and Airbrush classrooms. A FACS Kitchen was also included, equipped with commercial appliances for their new culinary arts program and residential appliances for their traditional home economics class. It also contains all other science, math and world language classes. The addition received a grand South Student Lobby with platform risers designed for student gathering. 

 

The school's existing Performing Arts Center (renovated in 2009) remained intact. A single-story Music Addition to the south boasts grand Orchestra and Band Rooms, each over 3,200 SF. The rooms were completed with sound diffusing panels, angled saw tooth walls with sound curtains, and acoustical panels.  Four sound isolating Practice Rooms with playback technology complete the Music Addition.  

 

The school’s progressive Special Education program was carefully considered during programming. All SSD classrooms were located within each department and were not segregated. With minor changes to size and layout, the classrooms help kids have a real high school experience, while accommodating their needs. A Life Skills room, Sensory room and Therapy rooms were programmed in addition to standard curriculum classrooms.

 

Size: 123,048 SF New Construction 

          147,079 SF Renovation

Cost: $79.2 M

FFE Product Cost: $2.2 M

Graphics Package Cost: $350,000

Completion Date: Fall 2018

Roles: Lead Interior Designer

           Programming through CA

           Graphics Package            

           FF&E Product and Finish Selections