In Wesley Chapel, Fla., a half-hour north of Tampa, Kirkland Ranch Academy of Innovation (KRAI) is “not going to look like anything you’ve ever seen before,” Kim Moore, assistant superintendent at Pasco County Schools, said in a statement. “This is going to be a cool school.”
Set to open for the 2022-23 school year, the 180,000-square-foot building will focus on Career and Technical Education (CTE), preparing students for high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand careers. It will offer hands-on, interactive learning that teaches skills more than theory—equipping students with the competencies they need to transition from high school to careers or college.
The purpose-built CTE high school will enroll more than 1,000 students, studying disciplines ranging from digital technology and engineering to biomedical science, cybersecurity, building construction, robotics, and more. Like the high-tech interdisciplinary buildings found on university campuses, KRAI is designed to fuel innovation, entrepreneurship, and career preparedness.
KRAI’s modern architecture and cantilevered entry canopy—hovering atop two simple columns—nod to the building sciences field, one of the school’s study areas. In addition to an open-air interior courtyard, the building will feature bridges, stairways, seating, and informal gathering areas—including a stage—that encourage incidental meetings and gatherings.
Every space is engineered to foster community and collaboration. A two-story collaboration hub, for instance, will include flexible furniture to support large gatherings and smaller-scale collaborations among students and outside partners. Like every space in the building, it will be bright, open, and reconfigurable.
Each CTE classroom is designed to function as a makerspace, filled with professional-grade equipment, technology, and tools. These malleable spaces can change as career demands evolve.
Owner/developer: Pasco County Schools
Design architect: CannonDesign
Architect of record: Hepner Architects
MEP engineer: Engineering Matrix
Structural engineer: DeCaroWillson
General contractor/construction manager: Creative Contractors
Related Stories
Mixed-Use | Feb 11, 2015
Developer plans to turn Eero Saarinen's Bell Labs HQ into New Urbanist town center
Designed by Eero Saarinen in the late 1950s, the two-million-sf, steel-and-glass building was one of the best-funded and successful corporate research laboratories in the world.
| Jan 15, 2015
Libeskind unveils 'zig zag' plan for recreational center near Vilnius ski area
Perched on the highest peak between Vilnius' historic quarter and downtown, the Vilnius Beacon will be a hub for visiting skiers and outdoor enthusiasts.
| Jan 7, 2015
4 audacious projects that could transform Houston
Converting the Astrodome to an urban farm and public park is one of the proposals on the table in Houston, according to news site Houston CultureMap.
| Aug 6, 2014
BIG reinvents the zoo with its 'Zootopia' natural habitat concept [slideshow]
Bjarke Ingels’ firm is looking to improve the 1960s-designed Givskund Zoo in Denmark by giving the animals a freer range to roam.
| Jul 30, 2014
German students design rooftop solar panels that double as housing
Students at the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences designed a solar panel that can double as living space for the Solar Decathlon Europe.
| Jul 24, 2014
MIT researchers explore how to make wood composite-like blocks of bamboo
The concept behind the research is to slice the stalk of bamboo grass into smaller pieces to bond together and form sturdy blocks, much like conventional wood composites.
| Jul 14, 2014
Meet the bamboo-tent hotel that can grow
Beijing-based design cooperative Penda designed a bamboo hotel that can easily expand vertically or horizontally.
| Jul 14, 2014
Foster + Partners unveils triple-glazed tower for RMK headquarters
The London-based firm unveiled plans for the Russian Copper Company's headquarters in Yekaterinburg.
| Jul 11, 2014
First look: Jeanne Gang reinterprets San Francisco Bay windows in new skyscraper scheme
Chicago architect Jeanne Gang has designed a 40-story residential building in San Francisco that is inspired by the city's omnipresent bay windows.
| Jul 11, 2014
Are these LEGO-like blocks the future of construction?
Kite Bricks proposes a more efficient way of building with its newly developed Smart Bricks system.