HMFH Architects

Responding to HMFH’s system-wide master plan, this new 157,000 sf school builds community while supporting a range of curriculum needs, and meets MA-CHPS sustainability standards through use of photovoltaics and daylight harvesting. The program for the school was developed through inclusive community visioning workshops, in which businesspeople, parents, teachers, and students articulated their mutual desire for a school building that builds community. In support of this ambition, the three-story academic building is organized around a “town square” cafeteria, which serves as a central student hub during the day and public meeting area for evening use.

I had faith in HMFH from the start, but the way the vision has come together is spot on. The design, the feel, the color choices, the flow, the little things are all superb.

Classrooms and labs are arranged in clusters, with specialized science labs as well as versatile labs for math and world languages. The school’s many breakout spaces, combined with its extensive use of borrowed light, allow students to work in small groups while supporting teacher oversight of multiple groups. The school also features a three-part design-build suite, in which the glass-walled design lab overlooks separate robotics/engineering and wood fabrication labs, allowing students to move seamlessly from one space to another as their projects require.