Spring 2017 | Friendship, Pittsburgh | Instructor Stefani Danes |

ENVIRONMENTAL CHARTER MIDDLE SCHOOL

We had the opportunity to work together with the leadership, teachers and students of the Environmental Charter School (ECS) in Pittsburgh to explore concepts for the design of their next generation of middle schools. We created a prototype charter middle school for 6th to 8th graders based on their four guiding principles and on their practices: Catalyst, Collaboration and Commitment. A fundamental aspect of ECS is to teach ecological literacy. To this end, students and teachers must be provided the opportunity to actively engage in the operation of the building - from passive strategies to active strategies to measuring and verification of performance. The program mandated square footage allocations for designated spaces, including an assembly/dining space, thinklab, resource center, 9 classrooms, and outdoor learning spaces.