Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District Breaks Ground on School

Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District, in Middleton, Wisc., (MCPASD) broke ground in June on the new Pope Farm Elementary School. Battling overcrowding at multiple schools, Eppstein Uhen Architects (EUA) worked with the district to design a future-ready school that embodies MCPASD’s mission: Inclusive. Innovative. Inspiring.

Set adjacent to an expansive conservancy, the design concept for Pope Farm Elementary School reinforces a connection to nature. With a variety of spaces to foster small- and large-group instruction, the school’s design is the result of extensive collaboration with teachers and staff.

Pope Farm

“We are excited to kick off construction at Pope Farm Elementary School” said Project Manager Robin Savola. “The safe, functional environments within Pope Farm Elementary School will support learners of all kinds, enhancing their reputation as a destination district.” 

The new 525-student elementary school is part of a larger district building project made possible by a successful $138.9 million referendum approved by voters in November 2018. Additional projects include:

  • Renovate and expand Middleton High School; Clark Street Community School will be included in the high school addition/renovation project
  • Add a cafeteria and areas of light interior renovation at Park Elementary School
  • Convert the current Clark Street Community School building into a 4K-early childhood site

Pope Farm Elementary School is set to open for the start of the 2020-21 school year. J.H. Findorff & Son is the Construction Manager on the project.

Featured

  • Florida District Completes Construction on New Leadership Institute

    Pinellas County Schools near Tampa, Fla., recently announced that construction is complete on the new Dr. Michael A. Grego Leadership Institute, according to a news release. The district partnered with Rowe Architects for the project’s design and with Skanska for construction services.

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • 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.

  • Moline-Coal Valley School District to Consolidate Two Schools into New Facility

    The Moline-Coal Valley School District in Moline, Ill., recently broke ground on a new elementary school that will consolidate the students and staff from two existing schools, according to local news. Robert Ontiveros Elementary School will serve as the new home for Lincoln-Irving Elementary School and Willard Elementary School.