Kawneer curtain walls create the perfect learning environment

With an ever-growing student body, Fayetteville High School in Arkansas decided to expand its capacity while creating a new, improved environment using Kawneer curtain walls to help students fulfill their potential. Three renowned architectural firms came together to design and build an impressive 530,000-square-foot campus capable of housing 3,000 students. It comprises two massive building blocks with a new arena, performing arts center, auditorium, music and athletic spaces, student commons, food service and administrative offices.
Despite being able to accommodate a large student population, the school was planned around the principle of multiple, independent small learning communities (SLCs) with 700 students. Each community has access to various rooms such as flexible multimedia labs, woodworking shops, robotics labs and bleacher-like grand staircases that transform into mini-auditoriums or leisure areas.
Fayetteville High School benefits from an abundance of daylight and delivers innovative learning areas that compel the next generation to envision solutions for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges.

Design highlights

The new school was built upon the foundations of the original building as a tribute to the institution's heritage and to retain its desirable location. The facility also managed to create a new connection to the local landscape by creating a natural link between the building and the outside area. 

Kawneer provides reliability with versatile features

The school’s interior is illuminated by 28,000-square-feet of curtain wall and 14,000-square-feet of storefront glass, delivering an unobstructed, breezy design that provides a healthy environment for students and teachers.
Kawneer’s 1600 Wall System^®1 Curtain Wall was installed with four rows of Versoleil^® SunShade and Trifab^® VersaGlaze^® 451T Stick Framing System. 

The main entrance was repositioned to create a more inviting, visible entry into the high school, and the open floor plan allows more daylight to come inside, creating a brighter and more inspirational atmosphere throughout the renovated building. Another prominent design feature is the large southward-facing windows overlooking a landscaped student commons area, which create a collegiate campus feel reflective of the school’s ties to the University of Arkansas. Other sustainable features - including the use of recycled building materials and energy-efficient environmental-control systems - contributed to LEED Gold^® certification of the building.

The architects strategically installed skylights and vertical windows within the deep floor plates, flooding the windowless internal areas with daylight. 

The challenge

The architects faced many challenges throughout the building’s construction. The whole project took four years to be completed and was done while the school was operating. Additionally, the project involved construction, demolitions and renovations, demanding several building techniques and machinery used in many structures around the campus.

The solution

The modernization was completed in a phased approach to minimize disruptions to the school's routine. Most demolitions were carried out during the summer break to keep teachers and students safe. 
Despite being seamlessly integrated with the surroundings, the new school has a distinctive identity that is welcoming and modern at the same time. 

Find out more at Kawneer.com.

PROJECT INFORMATION:
Building: Fayetteville High School
Location: Arkansas
Architects:
Hight Jackson Associates, Rogers, AR
Marlon Blackwell Architects, Fayetteville, AR
DLR Group, Overland Park, KS
General Contractor: Nabholz Construction Corp., Rogers, AR
Glazing Contractor: ACE Glass Construction, Little Rock, AR

PRODUCTS USED:

• 1600 Wall System^®1 Curtain Wall
• 350 Medium Stile Standard Entrance
• Trifab^® VersaGlaze^® 451T Stick Framing System
• Trifab^® VersaGlaze^® 451T SS Framing System
• 1010 Sliding Mall Front
• Versoleil^® SunShade - Outrigger System - for Curtain Wall