P.K. Yonge Middle-High School Construction Complete

SchenkelShultz Architecture announced this week that construction of the Middle-High School at the P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School in Gainesville, Fla., is complete. The public, K–12 school was designed to meet the LEED Gold Certification standard as set by the U.S. Green Building Council.

Affiliated with the University of Florida College of Education, the school is known for its innovative educational curricula and programs that provide each student with an optimized learning experience and environment. The facility was also awarded first place in the Architectural Showcase presented by the Florida Education Facilities Planners’ Association (FEFPA).

P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School

“Our goal was to design a physical environment that was an embodiment of the school’s mission to ‘design, test and disseminate innovations in education,’” said J. David Torbert, partner with SchenkelShultz Architecture. “We collaborated closely with P.K. Yonge’s Leadership Team, educators and students to create a new building that prioritizes active, participatory learning within a safe and secure environment.”

The three-story building was designed to create a student-centered, flexible, and technology-rich learning environment that fosters collaboration. It features amenities like STEM labs, open collaboration areas, distance-learning labs, open collaboration spaces, and break-out spaces for small groups. It was built to replace an existing, 60-year-old facility.

The construction manager for the project was Parrish McCall Constructors.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • California School District Completes Elementary School Modernization

    The San Diego Unified School District in San Diego, Calif., recently held a ribbon-cutting for a whole-site modernization of Pacific Beach Elementary School, according to local news. The school first opened with one building in 1930 and added six more between 1938 and 1957.

  • Minnesota District Starts Construction on Early Childhood Learning Center

    Sauk Rapids-Rice Public Schools in Sauk Rapids, Minn., recently announced that construction has begun on a new early childhood learning center and a new outdoor activities complex, according to a news release.

  • Architectural Power for the Modern Campus Landscape

    For generations, an outdoor classroom only required a textbook and a patch of grass. Today, not only has the laptop replaced the printed pages, the rise of agile learning has turned campuses into study halls with students listening to lectures and researching topics from quads, gardens, and plazas. The challenge for architects and facility managers is to provide connectivity without cluttering the landscape with visual eyesores or creating safety hazards with extension cords.

  • Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The College of Western Idaho's Agricultural Sciences Complex has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.