By SCN Staff
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.鈥擳he design of a new,聽800-student聽K-12聽school campus on New York鈥檚 Staten Island for the group Integration Charter聽Schools (ICS) is now underway.
Slated for completion by Spring 2021, CetraRuddy is the architect on this project. CLJ Building Enterprises Inc. is the general contractor.
Occupying three full levels of the eight-story Corporate Commons Three聽mixed-use complex, the new ICS facilities dramatically expand the organization’s聽ability to serve聽its growing student body. This project will also bring three ICS communities鈥攖he聽John W. Lavelle Preparatory Charter School聽(grades K-12),聽Nicotra Early College聽Charter聽School聽(grades 8-12), and聽New Ventures Charter School聽(grades 10-12)鈥攖ogether into a single campus for the first time.
CetraRuddy Principal Theresa M. Genovese said that the new work for ICS reflects a growing聽trend of incorporating urban schools within mixed-use聽communities.
鈥淭he architecture and聽interior design聽evolve from our firm鈥檚 guiding principles, creating聽a welcoming, flexible, and highly functional聽environment that nurtures and supports a range of diverse learning styles and聽educational needs, and that聽also enables teachers to do their best work.鈥�
The project also exemplifies emerging best practices for contemporary K-12 learning聽environments. Key project elements include:
- Sensitive聽integration within the larger mixed-use complex聽through a separate ground-floor聽student entry lobby and elevator bank, as well as the location of gyms,聽cafeterias, and other social聽spaces on the middle school floor to reduce noise聽impacts for other building tenants.
- Facilities聽that support diverse learning styles,聽including a range of spaces for group and individual聽musical聽instruction, as well as a full commercial teaching kitchen and working rooftop聽farm for food-based educational programs. These uses also support student job聽training and internship opportunities聽at Corporate Commons Three鈥檚 onsite,聽not-for-profit restaurant.
- A design approach emphasizing聽wellness聽for students and teaching staff alike.
Highlights include聽durable聽finishes in a calming neutral color palette; open corridors and classrooms聽oriented around the building鈥檚聽perimeter for maximum natural daylight exposure;聽dedicated counseling 鈥渃lusters鈥� for each grade comprising聽a meeting room,聽counseling room and teacher workroom adjacent to classrooms; large central聽common聽spaces for each grade to encourage a sense of community and belonging; a聽yoga center and meditation areas聽specifically for teachers; and the accessible聽green roof for nutrition-focused, skills-based education.
Added Genovese, 鈥淥ur goal for the design of the new聽Integration Charter School聽was to create an expanded campus which inspires the students and faculty to succeed聽together as a community.鈥�
The cost of this project is not being disclosed at this time.