EPiC Elementary School

EPiC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

LIBERTY, MISSOURI

  • Liberty Public Schools
  • Adaptive Reuse
  • 30,000 SF
  • $1.8 Million

Re-imagining a former administrative building created innovative environments for all elementary school students while saving District resources and accommodating rapid population growth. Students at EPiC are encouraged to push the boundaries of what an educational space can be.

The team set out to do more with less, designing spaces that were flexible and multi-functional and support learning at all times. The District owned space in a nearby office building. By moving their administrative office into this space, it opened up space for a learning environment without the expense of designing a new building.

The former District Administrative Center was re-imagined into EPiC Elementary School, an innovative project-based learning environment where “Every Person is Inspired to Create.” Designed to support 300 students, EPiC looks at space differently than a traditional school. Every square foot of the building is viewed as a learning space, supporting student group work.  Hollis + Miller designed flexible, multipurpose classrooms where students are exposed to project-based learning and educational technology. The learning environment also fosters individual learning and encourages discovery. This is an environment where children choose their adventure and have the opportunity to learn however they learn best.

I really felt comfortable explaining my ideas to Hollis + Miller, and the best part was that they would take our ideas and expand upon them.

–Dr. Michelle Schmitz

Lenexa City Center Library

Lenexa City Center Library

In association with Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture

LENEXA, KANSAS

  • Johnson County Library System
  • New Construction
  • 40,000 SF
  • $15 Million

The new Lenexa City Center Library is a source of inspiration, innovation and experiences that will enrich the surrounding community.

Located in the heart of Lenexa’s contemporary city center, this development is helping establish a new downtown for the city. Adjacent to a city hall, community center, restaurants and public market, the library welcomes all members of the community.

To achieve total flexibility, the majority of the library is an open loft-like space that houses the adult, teen, and juvenile collections on two levels. A two-story atrium serves as the living room for the community. Three large flexible meeting spaces and four smaller meeting spaces can be utilized by both library staff and community members and will provide access to technology for community groups, tutoring, and collaborative discussions. Patron convenience is at the forefront of the library’s automated conveyance system that allows patrons to both pick up holds and drop off returns via a drive-thru in the parking garage. The new library incorporates a service model designed to enhance public access to the collections, focus services to patrons, and integrate patron self-service strategies and staff mobility.

This new library is meant to engage the community. The Community commons visually connects to the civic plaza, street, and public market. The upper and lower entries allow for ease of patron access from both the Civic Center and Public Plaza.

Thirty-foot high towering glass and zinc shingled walls fold across two sides of the building and allow for connectivity between the outdoor plaza and library patrons. These folding walls are unified by a curving railing that weaves between the interior and exterior of the building. This ribbon-like railing draws patrons walking along the public plaza toward the library’s two entrances.

Maplewood Elementary School

Bright colors, wood tones and the maple leaf are just a few nods to the school pride that runs deep through generations of students that attended Maplewood Elementary School.

Continue reading

Ervin Early Learning Center

Ervin Early Learning Center

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI

  • Hickman Mills School District
  • Renovation
  • 110,000 SF total
  • $7.5 million

Repurposing an abandoned middle school gave pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students a space their own focused on literacy.

Research shows that students who do not have an early education focused on literacy are more likely to struggle throughout school and into adulthood. This dedicated brain-based facility for young learners allowed the District to put an emphasis on this issue without committing more square footage to Kindergarten. It also gave the District more classroom space within each elementary school for older grade levels.

ervin-wide

Hollis + Miller Architects Kansas City Workspace

Hollis + Miller Kansas City office

Hollis + Miller Architects Kansas City Workspace

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI

  • Corrigan Station
  • Tenant Finish
  • 30,000 SF

An open communicating stair prominently and purposely connects three floors at the center of Hollis + Miller’s Kansas City office space, enhancing all-office culture and promoting collaboration.

The main entry is located on the middle floor, with each floor housing unique resources to encourage co-mingling. We are stronger together, so by housing the charrette spaces on the bottom floor, the café on the middle floor, and the interior library, focus booths and human resources on the top floor, team members are obligated to interact daily outside their studios. This strengthens our six studios as a team and enhances our office culture.

inside

The Hollis + Miller Workspace reflects who we are and how we work. Every space reinforces the concepts of team, collaboration, and balance. Ultimately, the space is a stage and tool for our people to pursue the larger purpose of empowering communities through design and leadership.

Summit Ridge Middle School

Summit Ridge
Summit Ridge

Summit Ridge Middle School

LITTLETON, COLORADO

  • Jefferson County Public Schools
  • Addition/Renovation
  •  13,000 SF
  • $4.8 million

Visual connectivity and strategically designed collaborative spaces have led to an evolution of learning styles at this newly combined middle school. 

Jeffco Public Schools in Denver, Colorado recently decided to transition their sixth-grade students into middle-school, and needed to accommodate for the addition of 400 students. The existing building hosted traditional classrooms and learning areas, challenging the design team to seamlessly integrate the two buildings while incorporating collaborative learning elements into the addition. Hollis + Miller worked directly with the principal, faculty, community members, and students to create a design that would introduce collaboration spaces and a learning stair alongside new classrooms and science labs. Renovations to the school’s STEAM classrooms allow more students access to hands on education with computer aided design, engineering, and fabrication.

Blue Springs High School

A strategic blend of acoustical features, architectural elements and environmental graphics emulates school pride throughout every detail of the new addition at Blue Springs High School.

Continue reading