JFK Middle School

Elementary Schools | Middle Schools | High Schools | Specialized Educational & Administrative Facilities | K-12 Trends

For this middle school of 800 students, the design challenge was to unify the dated building and its collection of additions located on a small, restricted site and to address issues of overcrowding, difficulty with visual monitoring, and compliance with state adequacy standards.

The resulting design solution called for the consolidation of classroom spaces, administrative offices, and a media center in a new two-story addition replacing nearly fifty percent of the original structure.  Through cost analysis, this layout was shown to be more cost effective and energy efficient than attempting to renovate the existing facility.  A multistory building approach opened up site space to accommodate new parking, vehicle and bus drop off areas, and new student playground facilities.

In addition, the design team planned the organization and installation of an interim campus of portable buildings that allowed the school to vacate the existing buildings for a single construction period, rather than over multiple phases.  This strategy limited the duration of interruptions to the educational environment and created a greater economy of construction and scheduling for the project.

The final campus design provided the district with a modern facility at a fraction of the cost of building on an undeveloped site.

Location: Gallup, NM