The new Katherine Johnson Technology Magnet Academy (KJTMA) was designed with an emphasis on technology, STEM, and outdoor learning. The school provides learning opportunities focused on robotics, coding, science, digital art, and music for 900 kindergarten through fifth grade students each year.
The two-story, 109,500-sf facility includes a media center that is surrounded by a variety of secure outdoor learning areas. The two-story media center anchors the building and was designed to blur the lines between indoor and outdoor space through the utilization of daylight, views, thermal comfort, and materials.
Courtesy KJTMA
Grade-level rows of classrooms surround the building’s core. Flexible collaboration zones with operable acoustic glass partitions link the classroom corridors with the media center and outdoor environments.
See Also: Chapman University opens new science and engineering center
A binary code pattern was applied to the exterior building fenestration meant to mimic robotics and coding principles and provide an interior corridor experience that facilitates student visibility and interaction. The building’s interior features a space travel theme that connects content to the programmatic offerings in the adjacent spaces. For example, lessons about gravity are located near the gym, while a moon buggy is displayed near robotics. Dynamic QR codes embedded in the wall graphics enable students to access supplementary information through their school-issued iPads. Teachers can alter the content tied to the codes at any time to accommodate age ranges and subject matter.
Related Stories
| Sep 24, 2014
Frank Gehry's first building in Latin America will host grand opening on Oct. 2
Gehry's design for the Biomuseo, or Museum of Biodiversity, draws inspiration from the site's natural and cultural surroundings, including local Panamaian tin roofs.
| Sep 22, 2014
4 keys to effective post-occupancy evaluations
Perkins+Will's Janice Barnes covers the four steps that designers should take to create POEs that provide design direction and measure design effectiveness.
| Sep 22, 2014
Sound selections: 12 great choices for ceilings and acoustical walls
From metal mesh panels to concealed-suspension ceilings, here's our roundup of the latest acoustical ceiling and wall products.
| Sep 17, 2014
New hub on campus: Where learning is headed and what it means for the college campus
It seems that the most recent buildings to pop up on college campuses are trying to do more than just support academics. They are acting as hubs for all sorts of on-campus activities, writes Gensler's David Broz.
| Sep 15, 2014
Ranked: Top international AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Parsons Brinckerhoff, Gensler, and Jacobs top BD+C's rankings of U.S.-based design and construction firms with the most revenue from international projects, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Sep 15, 2014
Argentina reveals plans for Latin America’s tallest structure
Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner announces the winning design by MRA+A Álvarez | Bernabó | Sabatini for the capital's new miexed use tower.
| Sep 9, 2014
Using Facebook to transform workplace design
As part of our ongoing studies of how building design influences human behavior in today’s social media-driven world, HOK’s workplace strategists had an idea: Leverage the power of social media to collect data about how people feel about their workplaces and the type of spaces they need to succeed.
| Sep 7, 2014
Ranked: Top state government sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
PCL Construction, Stantec, and AECOM head BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest state government design and construction firms, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Sep 4, 2014
Best of education design: 11 projects win AIA CAE architecture awards [slideshow]
The CAE Design Excellence Award honors educational facilities that the jury believes should serve as an example of a superb place in which to learn. Projects range from a design school in Maryland to an elementary school in Washington.
Sponsored | | Sep 4, 2014
Learning by design: Steel curtain wall system blends two school campuses
In this the new facility, middle school and high school classroom wings flank either side of the auditorium and media center. A sleek, glass-and-steel curtain wall joins them together, creating an efficient, shared space. SPONSORED CONTENT
