Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Fort Rucker Elementary School

Department of Defense for Education Activity, Fort Rucker, Ala.

  • 09/01/15

Fort Rucker Elementary SchoolThe new Fort Rucker Elementary School, located on an active military installation, is designed as a modern learning environment filled with features and technology to meet the needs of today’s 21st-century student. The academic spaces are housed in seven learning neighborhoods that include learning studios and staff collaboration areas that open to larger learning hubs. Located at each entry is a unique Learning Wall that gives each neighborhood its own identity and promotes “way-finding”. The learnings studios embrace 21st-century educational tools with writeable desks, flexible furniture and operable walls between studios that allow the educational environment to adapt to the needs of the changing curriculum. The Commons, a two-story social gathering space, serves as the transition between the learning neighborhoods and the dining/multipurpose space, gymnasium, music and art suites.

The elementary school building serves as a teaching tool incorporating elements that support sustainability and educational opportunities for the students. These features include: bio gardens, learning terrace, a history walk, a demonstration photovoltaic panel and wind turbine. Another hands-on learning feature is the energy dashboard with real-time data on the school’s energy usage.

Fort Rucker Elementary SchoolARCHITECT

SchenkelShultz Architecture
J. DAVID TORBERT, AIA
BROOK K. SHERRARD
AIA, LEED-AP
407.872.3322

PROJECT INFORMATION

CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR
Mikey Smiley

COMPLETION DATE
Estimated May 2018

GROSS AREA
133,542 sq. ft.

PER STUDENT
166 sq. ft.

SITE SIZE
13 acres

CURRENT ENROLLMENT
707 students

CAPACITY
800 students

COST PER STUDENT
$58,483

COST PER SQ. FT.
$350

TOTAL COST
$46,787,000

COMPANY PROFILE

SchenkelShultz has been a leader in the design of 21stcentury learning environments for the past 20 years. The firm’s experience totals over 50 million square feet of educational projects, including more than 5.3 million square feet of 21st-century schools.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Texas Recruitment

    Texas Recruitment

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The University of Texas at Austin's Texas Recruitment has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of Renovation.

  • Campus Safety Requires Using Every Resource Available

    Across the U.S., school and campus leaders are facing a security landscape that has changed dramatically over the past decade. Incidents on school property have increased in recent years, with several consecutive years setting record totals. According to analysis of data by CNN, dozens of shootings now occur on school grounds annually across K-12 and higher education environments.

  • Children walking along bright school corridor with motion blur

    How Next-Gen Design Is Reshaping the Student Experience

    The environments where students learn play a crucial role in shaping their growth in and out of the classroom. By centering design on well-being, flexibility, and purpose, districts can ensure their facilities remain vibrant community assets for many years to come.

  • 144-Year-Old High-School Campus Debuts New Academic Facility

    San Diego High School (SDHS) in San Diego, Calif., recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new student services and classroom building; the project is part of a larger SDHS Whole Site Modernization project that began in 2022.