The Academy for Global Citizenship is a Chicago public charter school located in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood that takes an innovative and holistic approach to educating its students. With such a unique approach to learning, a unique building in which the learning could take place was also needed.
That is where Studio Gang came in and designed a campus that combines the qualities of an educational institution with those of an urban farm to create a space for students to learn first hand about wellness and sustainability. According to Studio Gang’s website, the new campus is meant to work in tandem with the school’s mission to provide “a model for educational innovation that has the potential to ignite a global movement for change.” AGC’s current campus, which consists of two buildings separated by a busy road, was not adequately suiting the goals of the school.
According to ArchDaily, the proposed design combines indoor and outdoor learning environments that are laid out around a central courtyard. Instead of separating the different areas of the school with strict boundaries, the areas, while still separated by age groups, are designed to overlap and combine for flexible use and collaboration. Additionally, a “wonder path” connects each environment, both indoor and outdoor, to provide a direct route to various hands-on laboratories and learning stations.
Rendering courtesy Studio Gang
Since sustainability and wellness are such strong components of the schools focus, it needed a campus that reflected those goals. As such, the school hopes to achieve net-positive status, meaning it will produce more energy than it uses. To accomplish this, the school will use a combination of solar energy, greenhouses and seasonal gardens (meant to produce a significant amount of the food used to prepare the students’ meals), stormwater management, natural ventilation, and geothermal systems.
The urban farm will cover three acres and is designed in partnership with Growing Power, a national nonprofit organization that helps provide safe and affordable food for people in all communities. The farm will be integrated into the daily curriculum and will connect students with the food cycle, allowing them to participate in farming, food preparation, and animal care.
Continuing the theme of sustainability and wellness, AGC and Studio Gang plan to use building materials and finishes that are locally sourced and have low-embodied energy. The building itself is oriented to provide peak solar access for the outdoor learning spaces and greenhouses and also to maximize the school’s photovoltaic energy collection.
The campus is meant to be a literal representation of the school’s educational strategy that goes beyond just being a structure where learning can occur to become an actual part of the learning process.
For more pictures and renderings of the project, click here.
Related Stories
| Jun 5, 2013
USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets
In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.
| Jun 3, 2013
Construction spending inches upward in April
The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced today that construction spending during April 2013 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $860.8 billion, 0.4 percent above the revised March estimate of $857.7 billion.
| May 21, 2013
7 tile trends for 2013: Touch-sensitive glazes, metallic tones among top styles
Tile of Spain consultant and ceramic tile expert Ryan Fasan presented his "What's Trending in Tile" roundup at the Coverings 2013 show in Atlanta earlier this month. Here's an overview of Fasan's emerging tile trends for 2013.
| May 20, 2013
Jones Lang LaSalle: All U.S. real estate sectors to post gains in 2013—even retail
With healthier job growth numbers and construction volumes at near-historic lows, real estate experts at Jones Lang LaSalle see a rosy year for U.S. commercial construction.
| Apr 30, 2013
Tips for designing with fire rated glass - AIA/CES course
Kate Steel of Steel Consulting Services offers tips and advice for choosing the correct code-compliant glazing product for every fire-rated application. This BD+C University class is worth 1.0 AIA LU/HSW.
| Apr 25, 2013
Colorado State University, DLR Group team to study 12 high-performance schools
DLR Group and the Institute for the Built Environment at Colorado State University have collaborated on a research project to evaluate the effect of green school design on occupants and long-term building performance.
| Apr 24, 2013
North Carolina bill would ban green rating systems that put state lumber industry at disadvantage
North Carolina lawmakers have introduced state legislation that would restrict the use of national green building rating programs, including LEED, on public projects.
| Apr 24, 2013
Los Angeles may add cool roofs to its building code
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants cool roofs added to the city’s building code. He is also asking the Department of Water and Power (LADWP) to create incentives that make it financially attractive for homeowners to install cool roofs.
| Apr 22, 2013
Top 10 green building projects for 2013 [slideshow]
The AIA's Committee on the Environment selected its top ten examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions that protect and enhance the environment.
| Apr 15, 2013
Seattle school certified as world's fourth Living Building
Bertschi School, an independent elementary school in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Wash., is now home to the first Living Building on the West Coast and the world’s fourth fully-certified Living Building.