A new charter school has broken ground in Los Angeles’ Koreatown neighborhood. Operated by Bright Star Schools and designed by L.A. firm Berliner Architects, Rise Kohyang High School (RKHS) will serve about 600 students in grades 9 to 12 and is slated to open in the fall of 2023.
With almost 88,000 square feet, the $40 million high school is an L-shaped, three-story building with a central courtyard. The outdoor space can be accessed via the ground-level multipurpose room/lunch area and school offices. On opposite ends of the building, two stairways lead to the second floor, providing access to 24 classrooms on two levels, a library/media room, and additional staff areas. Offices are placed on all three floors to provide student supervision and facilitate collaboration among administrative staff and teachers. A second-floor balcony overlooks the courtyard.
Around the campus perimeter, fencing both creates a secure enclosure and gives students a visual connection to the outside. The fence also features the school’s name in a mix of English and Korean, a nod to the school’s community.
“Space is sparse and expensive in Los Angeles,” Richard Berliner, principal of Berliner Architects, said in a statement. “Our primary challenge was accommodating RKHS students, faculty, and staff while programming an outdoor space on an extraordinarily small, 1.2-acre site. We designed the courtyard to act as the school’s main entryway and took advantage of the naturally sloping campus topography to integrate a partially subterranean ground level for parking and student drop-off.”
The project meets design guidelines from the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) for reduced energy consumption and increased sustainability. Green features promote water conservation, energy efficiency, greenhouse-gas emission reduction, and indoor environmental quality. Skylights, louvered sun blades, and roller-type window shades balance natural light and solar heat gain.
Berliner Architects is also designing the $35 million Rise Kohyang Middle School, located about two miles from RKHS.
Building Team:
Owner and/or developer: Bright Star Schools
Design architect: Berliner Architects
Architect of record: Berliner Architects
MEP engineer: Budlong and Associates
Structural engineer: Saiful Bouquet Structural Engineers
General contractor/construction manager: Bernards
Related Stories
| Sep 7, 2011
KSS Architects wins AIA NJ design award
The project was one of three to win the award in the category of Architectural/Non-Residential.
| Dec 17, 2010
Sam Houston State arts programs expand into new performance center
Theater, music, and dance programs at Sam Houston State University have a new venue in the 101,945-sf, $38.5 million James and Nancy Gaertner Performing Arts Center. WHR Architects, Houston, designed the new center to connect two existing buildings at the Huntsville, Texas, campus.
| Dec 17, 2010
New engineering building goes for net-zero energy
A new $90 million, 250,000-sf classroom and laboratory facility with a 450-seat auditorium for the College of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign is aiming for LEED Platinum.
| Dec 17, 2010
How to Win More University Projects
University architects representing four prominent institutions of higher learning tell how your firm can get the inside track on major projects.
| Nov 29, 2010
New Design Concepts for Elementary and Secondary Schools
Hard hit by the economy, new construction in the K-12 sector has slowed considerably over the past year. Yet innovation has continued, along with renovations and expansions. Today, Building Teams are showing a keener focus on sustainable design, as well as ways to improve indoor environmental quality (IEQ), daylighting, and low-maintenance finishes such as flooring.
| Nov 23, 2010
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library
The George W. Bush Presidential Center, which will house the former president’s library and museum, plus the Bush Institute, is aiming for LEED Platinum. The 226,565-sf center, located at Southern Methodist University, in Dallas, was designed by architect Robert A.M. Stern and landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh.
| Nov 9, 2010
Just how green is that college campus?
The College Sustainability Report Card 2011 evaluated colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada with the 300 largest endowments—plus 22 others that asked to be included in the GreenReportCard.org study—on nine categories, including climate change, energy use, green building, and investment priorities. More than half (56%) earned a B or better, but 6% got a D. Can you guess which is the greenest of these: UC San Diego, Dickinson College, University of Calgary, and Dartmouth? Hint: The Red Devil has turned green.
| Nov 3, 2010
Seattle University’s expanded library trying for LEED Gold
Pfeiffer Partners Architects, in collaboration with Mithun Architects, programmed, planned, and designed the $55 million renovation and expansion of Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons at Seattle University. The LEED-Gold-designed facility’s green features include daylighting, sustainable and recycled materials, and a rain garden.
| Nov 3, 2010
Recreation center targets student health, earns LEED Platinum
Not only is the student recreation center at the University of Arizona, Tucson, the hub of student life but its new 54,000-sf addition is also super-green, having recently attained LEED Platinum certification.
| Nov 3, 2010
Designs complete for new elementary school
SchenkelShultz has completed design of the new 101,270-sf elementary Highlands Elementary School, as well as designs for three existing buildings that will be renovated, in Kissimmee, Fla. The school will provide 48 classrooms for 920 students, a cafeteria, a media center, and a music/art suite with outdoor patio. Three facilities scheduled for renovations total 19,459 sf and include an eight-classroom building that will be used as an exceptional student education center, a older media center that will be used as a multipurpose building, and another building that will be reworked as a parent center, with two meeting rooms for community use. W.G. Mills/Ranger is serving as CM for the $15.1 million project.
