North East I.S.D. San Antonio, Texas Winner of the 2005 CEFPI Design Concept Award In an effort to create a school capable of enhancing middle school education, the planning team began by touring and analyzing twelve of the best middle schools in Texas. Separate small teams studied various school facilities, operations and curriculum to determine how best to integrate these key concepts into an outstanding educational facility.
The resulting design creates an innovative learning environment by organizing the school into three distinct grade level Houses. A Collaborative Learning Center in each House, which is easily supervised by surrounding classrooms, supports individual discovery and teamwork. This open inclusive educational environment encourages the inquiry and discussion that develop essential skills and collaborative relationships between students and teachers.