I'll never forget my amazement when my favorite jazz vocalist, also my teacher, revealed that even as a veteran musician, she still gets nervous on the stage. "Nervous energy encourages me to take chances" she said, emphasizing that taking chances is key to the musical improvisation for which she is known to this day. I enjoy finding…

Recent school tragedies in Wisconsin, Colorado, and Pennsylvania challenge school planning and management leaders to face a crucial decision: will such events be permitted to inspire educational fortresses based on the divisiveness of fear or will we rise to the higher mission of creating learning environments that welcome, unify and inspire…

Folding partitions and multipurpose spaces meet flexibility needs at two new schools in Allief, Texas. (Author/MLF)

Uses the example of award-winning Black Hawk Middle School in Minnesota to examine: (1) developing a middle school architecture; (2) benefits of the house concept; (3) the need for staff involvement in school design; (4) assembling houses into schools; (5) reduced discipline problems; (6) fostering teacher collaboration; and (7) measuring success.…

Fast tracking and construction management resulted in a less expensive and rapidly completed high school for the Cumberland Regional High School District in New Jersey. (MLF)

Discusses "pods,""team areas," and "houses" as middle school physical environments that support the type of learning opportunities young adolescents need. Offers examples of such school designs from Cleveland, Tennessee; British Columbia; and Milledgeville, Georgia. Concludes by suggesting specifications for new middle school buildings. (EV)

Three facilities ranging from elementary to university levels are examples of modern schools in terms of electrical features, flexibility, and concept. (Author/MLF)

Describes Noble High School, the largest in Maine. The $33.6 million project has 15 separate, 100-student "communities" within the school, which accommodate the district's project-based, team teaching methods. In addition, the facility provides space for myriad community functions. (EV)

The conversion of large urban high schools into small, focused learning centers is gaining currency as an education reform strategy. This publication provides guidelines, along with guiding questions, for those considering such a conversion. The first section explores the structural, organizational, and political challenges involved in converting…

Studies show that deteriorating school facilities take their toll on students' and teachers' health and morale. Classrooms should be accessible to the outdoors; clustered around a commons; adaptable and flexible; and aesthetically pleasing. Architects say natural lighting and noise reduction are routine parts of their job. Research studies support…

Explores the house-concept design in educational facilities and explains how this concept addresses the relationship between the following dimensions of the school: learning processes; organizational structures; and learning environments. Also discusses how this concept can be incorporated into renovation projects and its future possibilities. (GR)

Topeka West High School has approximately 1,500 students divided into four houses of 375 students. An effort is made to randomly distribute the incoming sophomores equally among the four houses. Each house has an assistant principal, a counselor, and a staff of 8 to 10 teachers representing the instructional areas of English, social studies, and…

School design must reflect deep-seated changes in educational practices such as using outcome-based education, reorganizing traditional grade structures, grouping students in "houses," and mainstreaming handicapped children. Describes designs for five school buildings that are intended to enhance and undergird what goes on in classrooms.…

Uses space problems of a 15-year-old South Carolina middle school to illustrate the importance of a proper facility-design process. Planning principles such as change of space function, flexibility, accommodation of technology, structural quality, adequate supervision, and proper maintenance should be revisited. Time is a good test of design and…