Students Benefit From Safer Flooring

Ecore

CCA students benefitted from safer, slip-free flooring in their athletic center and the school benefitted from procuring a durable, longer-lasting floor that requires less maintenance over time.

“Everything starts with the flooring,” says Dana Ridenour, director of advancement at Calvary Christian Academy (CCA), a pre-K3–12 school located in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and committed to excellence in academics, athletics, arts, technology, leadership, and ministry. “Then you can start building and painting; but, you have got to have a great floor first.”

CCA recognized the significance flooring has in a space. So, when CCA renovated its fitness center in the spring of 2017, school leadership listened to the recommendation of Legend Fitness, a fitness equipment manufacturer involved with the project, and specified Ecore Athletic surfacing.

“When I visited the site for the first time, I saw a student trying to push a sled on concrete, and it wouldn’t move,” says Troy Kelley, director of Athletics for Ecore. “It’s impossible to push a sled on that surface. It’s not good for the sled, the athlete or the floor.”

That’s because the surface of the entire fitness center, which is housed inside a former warehouse adjacent to the campus, was concrete. Kelley suggested four surfaces that provide safety, ergonomic and acoustic properties for this 3,774-square-foot space, which is used by more than 200 students and student athletes daily.

CCA had 1,482 square feet of Monster Roll installed in the weight lifting area, which features 14 racks with custom, inlaid platforms for Olympic-style weight lifting. Monster Roll is a 22.5mm system designed to provide the firm footing desired in strength training with the ergonomic demands of aggressive functional training. “It’s going to save us so much on weights and other equipment, because all that stuff is no longer getting banged up,” says Ridenour.

CCA is extremely happy with the outcome of the renovation and all of the surfaces in the fitness center. “We waited a long time to get this project done,” says Ridenour. “The products are just fantastic. For the first time, we have safe and slip-free surfaces.”

www.ecoreintl.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • S4L Announces 2026 Education Design Showcase Winners

    Spaces4Learning is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2026 Education Design Showcase! Now in its 27th year, the annual awards program honors innovative solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction across K–12 and higher education.

  • Embry-Riddle Completes Construction on Research, Lab Facility

    Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Daytona Beach, Fla., recently announced the end of construction on a new research and lab facility on campus. The Center for Aerospace Engineering II (CAT II) will support aerospace research and technology development and broke ground last summer.

  • Designing the Bridge Between Inclusivity and Independence in K–12 Schools

    Fostering independence is fundamental to learning and development for K–12 students. It offers many proven benefits, such as enhanced confidence, problem-solving, decision-making, and social skills. However, this foundational objective loses its impact if it’s not accessible and adaptable to all students. Inclusivity plays a critical role in cultivating independence and healthy autonomy for students, fostering positive student learning outcomes by uniting pedagogy with the physical learning environment.

  • Purdue Fort Wayne Opens New Student Housing Complex

    Purdue University Fort Wayne (PFW) in Fort Wayne, Ind., recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new, 600-bed student housing complex on campus, according to a news release.