Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

21st Century Military School Chosen for Design Excellence Awards

  • 11/26/14

Woolpert, a national A&E, geospatial firm headquartered in Dayton, has been named a recipient of two awards for school facility design through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) 2014 Chief of Engineers Awards of Excellence Program.

Both honors, the Design Honor Award and the Building of the Future Award, recognize the design of the Barkley Elementary School in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, one of the first schools developed under the 21st Century Education Initiative set forth through the Department of Defense Education Activities (DoDEA) program.

DoDEA aims to replace aging primary and secondary schools – some as old as 50 years – serving the students of U.S. military families worldwide. The department’s goal is to ensure that its 181 schools, located around the world, provide an environment that supports 21st Century teaching practices and high educational standards while meeting resiliency and sustainability objectives.

Established in 1965, the USACE award program promotes excellence in design achievements by USACE and its professional contracting partners. The Barkley School design team included DoDEA, the USACE Norfolk District, the USACE Louisville District and Woolpert.  The firm has been continuously working with DoDEA since 2004.

“We’re pleased to bring our expertise in 21st Century school design to the partnership with the USACE Norfolk District, USACE Louisville District, and DoDEA,” said Doug Brown, Woolpert’s project director. “Our work has been a true collaboration to develop innovate design solutions that will help to shape the future of education for children from U.S. military families.”

The Chief of Engineers Design Honor Award recognizes the school’s innovative design, which incorporates open and flexible spaces to accommodate multiple learning and teaching styles. The building features a rooftop learning garden, and an inviting, dynamic information center that encourages students to learn and explore.

The Building of the Future Award showcases design innovations that significantly reduce energy requirements and their associated costs. In this regard, the Barkley structure represents a compact, ICF building envelope with a geothermal HVAC system to maximize energy efficiency and savings.

In 2013, Woolpert’s design of the Barkley Elementary School was recognized with the Learning by Design Outstanding Project Award and the American School and University Work in Progress Citation Award.

Featured

  • UT-San Antonio Begins Residence Hall Renovations

    The University of Texas at San Antonio recently began a $6-million renovation project to one of its residence halls, according to a news release. Originally completed in 1986, Chisolm Hall measures in at 120,860 square feet and is the oldest and largest residence hall on campus.

  • Higher Ed is Betting on New Buildings While Quietly Undermining Their Campuses — Here’s Why

    In this climate, the owner’s representative has changed from a delivery-focused advisor to a strategic campus partner. Institutions are increasingly relying on owner’s reps not just to manage, cope, schedule, and budget, but also help evaluate whether a project should proceed at all.

  • USC Launches Major AI Initiative After $200M Gift

    The University of Southern California in Los Angeles, Calif., recently announced that it has launched a “transformational” new AI initiative thanks to a $200M gift, according to a news release. The project will leverage AI toward breakthroughs and innovations in subjects like the health sciences, business, security, and the arts.

  • 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.