The evolution of libraries for elementary and secondary schools has seen these spaces emerge as media centers of learning and collaboration for their students. However, library spaces, as they’ve been configured traditionally, don’t always lend themselves readily to that kind of transformation.
“The flaw of outdated space is that the design of the media center may not reflect or support” the current learning experience, states Wold Architects and Engineers, the Minnesota-based firm, in a recent white paper titled “From data retrieval to data creation: trends and opportunities for modern media centers.”
That white paper positions media—“the system and organization through which information is spread to a large number of people”—at the heart of a school’s learning. “No other space in a school is better situated to impact all learners and spark innovation,” the white paper states.
The flexible design of modern media centers can accommodate both personalized and project-based learning, different spatial options, as well as information access through a variety of technologies. Spaces can be “zoned” for both private study and communal student interaction. Media Centers “are less about retrieval” and more about “access and inclusion for any type of information for communication,” says Vaughn Dierks, AIA, LEED AP, a Partner with Wold and one of the white paper’s coauthors.
BOOKS AND ACTIVITIES DECENTRALIZED
Dierks cites as examples several recent media center projects his firm has been engaged in. For a new high school for Hermantown Community Schools in Minnesota, Wold created a “deconstructed” media center called Digital Commons, which has become the school’s hub. Bookshelves were scaled back and books placed in high-density storage that takes up a fraction of the shelf space. Students reserve book online and are supported by IT and Media specialists who are located at help desk/information stations. The entire media center is open space surrounded by classrooms and labs.
At Centerview Elementary School in Spring Lake Park, Minn., students can self-checkout books that are distributed to areas near clusters for classrooms. The Media Center opens to an adjacent cafeteria, with learning “stairs” and performance space as central elements.
The Media Center for the Prairie View PK-8 school for Independent School District #728 in Otsego, Minn., includes collaborative spaces adjacent and open to the cafeteria. The in-between space has come to be known as “The Living Room” and is accessible to the school’s community. Secure spaces for books and technology are behind an operable glass wall.
In Idalia, Colo., the Idalia PK-12 has dispersed previously centralized books and other resources to spaces adjacent to classrooms that support different grade levels.
Related Stories
| Sep 20, 2021
K-12 school design trends for 2021, with Wold's Vaughn Dierks
K-12 school design exert Vaughn Dierks discusses the latest K-12 school design trends and needs.
K-12 Schools | Sep 5, 2021
Philadelphia builds a new school in under 18 months, thanks to a P3 pact between the school district and developer
Gilbane and Stantec were key players in the design and construction of Propel Academy.
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2021
2021 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
The 2021 Giants 400 Report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Resiliency | Aug 19, 2021
White paper outlines cost-effective flood protection approaches for building owners
A new white paper from Walter P Moore offers an in-depth review of the flood protection process and proven approaches.
K-12 Schools | Aug 18, 2021
Hastings Architecture completes two new K-12 projects in Nashville
The projects have very different programs but both play critical roles on their respective campuses.
K-12 Schools | Aug 13, 2021
A new P3 guide for K-12 school construction is released
This alternative financing isn’t a silver bullet, but it does provide options to cash-strapped districts.
Contractors | Jul 23, 2021
The aggressive growth of Salas O'Brien, with CEO Darin Anderson
Engineering firm Salas O'Brien has made multiple acquisitions over the past two years to achieve its Be Local Everywhere business model. In this exclusive interview for HorizonTV, BD+C's John Caulfield sits down with the firm's Chairman and CEO, Darin Anderson, to discuss its business model.
K-12 Schools | Jul 9, 2021
LPA Architects' STEM high school post-occupancy evaluation
LPA Architects conducted a post-occupancy evaluation, or POE, of the eSTEM Academy, a new high school specializing in health/medical and design/engineering Career Technical Education, in Eastvale, Calif. The POE helped LPA, the Riverside County Office of Education, and the Corona-Norco Unified School District gain a better understanding of which design innovations—such as movable walls, flex furniture, collaborative spaces, indoor-outdoor activity areas, and a student union—enhanced the education program, and how well students and teachers used these innovations.
K-12 Schools | Jun 29, 2021
A Maryland school system launches a P3 program to speed up K-12 school design, financing, and construction
Gilbane and Stantec are part of a consortium that breaks ground on six new schools this week.
Resiliency | Jun 24, 2021
Oceanographer John Englander talks resiliency and buildings [new on HorizonTV]
New on HorizonTV, oceanographer John Englander discusses his latest book, which warns that, regardless of resilience efforts, sea levels will rise by meters in the coming decades. Adaptation, he says, is the key to future building design and construction.