St. Cloud
Middle School

“Song + Associates has delivered innovative, technology rich, 21st century schools utilizing green and sustainable features. They worked collaboratively with our school district stakeholders and our construction manager to achieve complex phasing, resolution of design/construction coordination issues, and met our strict budget parameters with innovative solutions that maximized opportunities to create an exceptional learning environment.”

-DAVE SHARMA, CHIEF FACILITIES OFFICER, FACILITIES SERVICES DEPARTMENT, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF OSCEOLA COUNTY

The goal of this project was to design and build a 948-student elementary school campus and a 1480-student middle school campus adjacent to each other on the same 21-acre parcel. The intent was to share as many campus infrastructure elements as possible. Two excellent educational facilities have been achieved in 4 to 8 fewer acres than typical.

Shared elements include Central Energy Plant; Dining/Multipurpose Building with separate serving lines and folding wall; bus circulation loop; parent drop-off circulation path; 50% of retention area; after hours parking; and a new entrance drive with new traffic signal. An estimated $2M was saved with this approach.

 Aesthetically, it was important to unify the complex, with clearly distinct school images and well-defined entrances into the two schools’ secure lobbies and administration areas. This was achieved using distinctive entrance forms.

 Community events are facilitated by the shared multipurpose and dining building with two stages, full kitchen, and a folding wall. This space can be opened to accommodate 400 people or use to accommodate separate events with the folding acoustic wall. The media centers of each school are easily accessible with convenient parking.

 Every educational space is equipped with smart boards, including STEM labs, skills labs, resource rooms, music instruction, multi-purpose rooms, media centers, and conference rooms. In the STEM labs and computer labs, laptop charging stations are provided. The buildings are also provided with a wireless network for handheld devices.

 Sustainability features include high performance glass and insulated windows; high insulation values; low albedo Energy Star roofing; bi-polar ionization to reduce air handler size; low VOC and green certified interior finishes; occupancy sensors and energy management; and reduced site acreage due to shared site.