Project Description
Sturgis is a new public charter high school for 400 students in grades 9 to 12, designed for their highly successful ‘International Baccalaureate for All’ program. The school asked Studio G to design the 52,000 sf building using modular construction methods in order to meet their tight schedule, and a limited construction budget of $165/sf. The use of modular construction methods shortened the construction time to approximately 9 months, and the building opened on time in August 2012.
At the nexus of two academic wings, the lobby opens to a central stair hall that expands into a casual amphitheater for student presentations and gatherings. The public areas of the school surround it: the administrative offices and library/resource center on the first floor, and special education and counseling areas on the second floor. The hallways in each direction lead to twenty classrooms, five science labs, and specialty rooms for art, theater, music and fitness. Locker pods punctuate the end of each hallway, for additional student gathering spaces.
The building elevations are sheathed in a wave-like colorful pattern reminiscent of the sea and sand of Cape Cod’s nearby shoreline. The ‘waves’ are contained by metal projections at entries and stairways. At the interior of the L-shaped building, a courtyard patio with picnic tables opens out to the grounds beyond for recreation and social activities.
The site work involves conservation and some restoration of wetlands, as well as ecological storm water management with bio-swales and rain gardens.