21st Century Military School Chosen for Design Excellence Awards
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.