Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Daylighting Leads to a More Engaging Environment

  • 10/01/15
Daylighting

Westside Christian High School gave students the benefits of natural light by installing Series M74 DS units for daytime lighting in the gymnasium.

Westside Christian High School is a non-denominational educational facility located in Tigard, Ore. After 33 years, the student population had outgrown the current space, prompting the construction of a new campus near downtown Portland.

Incorporating daylight into the school’s new interior gym became a main objective for administrators who wanted students to benefit from exposure to natural light during the school day while reducing the building’s electricity use.

The original strategy was to install traditional skylights, but concerns about adequate illumination and hot spots prompted the architect to seek other options.

InteriorTech, a building specialty contractor, proposed the use of Solatube Daylighting Systems, which, when compared to traditional skylights, provide a greater abundance and higher quality of light while reducing energy use.

Ultimately, InteriorTech installed 20 Solatube SkyVault Series M74 DS units for daytime lighting, complemented by LED lights with timers for nighttime lighting.

The advanced optics of the SkyVault Series captures massive amounts of high quality daylight for abundant output during athletic events, assemblies, and concerts.

With daylight illuminating the gym, electric lights stay off during the day allowing the school to cut its electricity consumption, lower its utility bills and minimize its carbon footprint.

Studies have shown that natural sunlight helps students feel more engaged, optimistic, and perform better overall. In addition to gymnasiums, daylighting can also be utilized in traditional classroom settings. Solatube’s SolaMaster Series is ideally suited to the classroom, providing clear, natural daylight to increase student engagement and responsiveness.

www.solatube.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • El Paso District Breaks Ground on New Elementary School

    The Canutillo Independent School District in El Paso, Texas, recently announced that construction has begun on a 119,000-square-foot elementary school, according to a news release. The district partnered with Pfluger Architects, Carl Daniel Architects, and LDCM Solutions on the new Davenport Elementary School, which has an expected completion date of 2027.

  • Harvard Announces Replacement Facility for Native American Program

    Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., recently announced that construction will begin this spring on a new home for its Native American Program, according to university news. The 6,500-square-foot, all-electric building will stand three stories and serve as the central hub for the Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP).