Langston High School Continuation/Langston-Brown Community Center

Narratives

Architect Narrative

Originally built in the 1920s as the first African-American elementary school in Arlington. The facility has a close connection to its community — particularly the members of the predominantly African-American neighborhood nearby who have traditionally been its primary users. Community members wanted the redeveloped site to be a “gateway” project, bringing identity to their community.

When County leaders decided to replace the existing building with a larger facility, they also had a vision that its replacement combined design and materials to greatly increase energy and resource efficiency, and indeed, set a new standard for future County facilities. A goal was established to achieve a Silver rating from the USGBC’s (US Green Building Council) LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program.

To meet the educational and recreational needs of the County, the firm participated in a series of expedited charettes over a three month period with county staff, building users and community members. This participatory design process developed the design through establishment of goals, consensus building and analysis by the group. The design was evaluated throughout the process as to how well it met the committee’s expectations. The design was shared with five adjacent citizen’s associations to further engage the greater Arlington community. This process of inclusion is part of what is known as “the Arlington Way”. In addition, the firm conducted a pre-planning process to explore, evaluate and document County staff’s commitment to the use of environmentally responsible architectural strategies and materials. The firm also held a series of detailed meetings during construction with subcontractors and suppliers to review the project’s environmental goals and requirements.

The design embraces a “new urbanism” by the creation of an oasis at the pedestrian scale of the streetscape. The building is placed on the prominent arterial corner of the site, with parking toward the rear of the site.
Much of the community’s interest focused on the site development. Issues such as the amount of parking, perceived neighborhood disruption based on facility operation, impact of traffic into the neighborhood and the building as a “gateway” to their community were of primary concern.

The building’s joint-use program was developed from the existing successful Langston model by the community. The inclusion of an infant care program was discussed and rejected by the group as not appropriate for this site. Intense scrutiny focused on the senior’s program which garnered much respect in the community. The potential for intergenerational programs from the younger children in Head Start continuing onto the teen program and seniors program was balanced with issues of desirable privacy, necessary security and opportunity for intergenerational contact. Not only were floor layouts discussed, but also how to stack programs throughout the three story facility.

The committee elected to keep Head Start away from the main traffic of the building and decided. placement on the ground level provided best drop off and access to site play areas. Administrative offices were positioned off of the main entry lobby to afford observation of visitors.

The seniors program was placed on the ground level, as well, with direct access to the county provided van transportation with outside waiting areas. Grouping of the senior’s “living room” with their “arts and crafts” provided the sense of community separate from the teen “game room” on the next level up.

Programs such as the gymnasium, game room, workout room, dance room and recreational technology room were placed on the second floor for easy community access and with the intent that these spaces would be shared with the high school program which is housed on the remainder of the second floor and the entire third floor.

The building is shared by three (3) programs: a High School Continuation Program, a Community Recreation Department, incorporating a senior and a teen program, and a Head Start/ACAP (Arlington Community Action Program) and is in use from 7:45am through 10:00pm. The facility is also designed with the intent to maximize the instructional needs of the High School Continuation Program. Teachers and students have the flexibility to engage in team teaching, incorporate interdisciplinary units and have access to the technology needed to enhance the curriculum. Also, as a significant part of Langston’s program, the high school students work together with community center user to develop intergenerational themes and activities throughout the school year. The design intent has been to create a multi-use, multigenerational facility that will set a new standard for future facilities in Arlington resulting from a community participatory design charette. Because of the community involvement, the building addresses appropriateness in the community, respect for the rich history of the African American heritage, and creates a gateway for the community along Route 29. The building design inside and out takes opportunities to recognize the rich history of the community (with the inclusion of a community historical archive room), while tying itself aesthetically to modern community projects (such as public art projects), and create a new image for the future of this community.

By not only having the vision to champion sustainable re-development of this existing site (USGBC LEED Silver rated) the county has gone to great lengths to have an open discussion with the surrounding community about the appropriateness of this development. How big does it need to be? How much parking is really justified to reduce overflow? How to tie-in to community public art programs?

· A facility that is safe, healthy , high performing and sustainable and makes effective use of technology as a learning tool. How was the school designed in accordance with principals of safe, healthy, high performing and sustainable schools?

The challenge was to implement the best practices for design in a context of an urban redevelopment site addressing safety, indoor environmental quality, and high performance. The firm developed a pre-planning “brainstorming” process that explored, evaluated and documented the potential environmental commitment of the client. Attendees at this brainstorming meeting included representatives from all of the Owner’s stakeholders, including the architect, mechanical engineers, civil engineers, county staff, the school system’s Director of Planning and the Director of Maintenance. The credits from the LEED scorecard were put into a matrix and then discussed so that the owners could identify potential commitments to design solution strategies as high, average, or low potential. In keeping with the school mentality, this was done as a score card, or report card, with high commitment being an “A,” and low commitment being a “D,” and rejected strategies being “F.” The compilation of this matrix became the basis of design criteria for the design team. It allowed the Owner to be informed of sustainable design strategies to be incorporated in the design and was a vehicle to encourage “out of the box” thinking by the assembled multi-disciplinary team. Major elements include the following:

· Recycling, reuse and diversion of 83% of the construction debris that would have otherwise gone to landfills. In addition, the firm saw to it that effective erosion and sedimentation controls were used throughout construction.

· Materials and processes to not only decrease the facility’s energy and resource consumption, but also reduce the indoor air quality effects of potentially harmful building materials. (stained concrete floor system was used in lieu of vinyl composition tile, greatly reducing the amount of solid materials and embodied energy required for flooring in approximately half of the facility. all paint, adhesives, sealants and carpets used for the building were low-odor and VOC-compliant).

· Pervious asphalt used in the facility’s parking spaces and a new bio-retention area have resulted in enhanced stormwater management, including a 25% reduction in the rate and quantity of runoff.

· Rainwater and runoff is collected in two 24-foot tall, 11,000-gallon tanks incorporated into the facility’s structure, to be used for onsite irrigation and other purposes.

· Low flow water closets and lavatory faucets and waterless urinals, the facility uses 23% less potable water from baseline fixture performance requirements of the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and saves an estimated 180,000 gallons of water each year.

· Saw-toothed roof configuration with vertical clerestories, providing additional natural lighting in every upper level classroom.

· Multi-switched lighting with high-efficiency lighting ballasts was installed for lighting control zones.

· The design also reduces the structure’s heat island effect through the use Energy Star compliant roof systems (with 0.9 emissivity or greater) and light colored/ high albedo materials (with reflectance of at least 0.3) in almost one-third of non-roof impervious surfaces. Controls for individual airflow, temperature and lighting are provided for at least 50% of the occupants for regularly occupied areas more than 15 feet from the perimeter wall.

· Sun control for mostly late afternoon light and glare for the classrooms and media center on the westerly side of the building.

The building envelope’s design has numerous large, external shading devices, drastically improving solar heat gain while maintaining views from more than 90% of the building’s occupied spaces. The HVAC systems exceed the budget design by using variable frequency drives on most fans and pumps and makeup-air units with plate type heat exchangers and exhaust air energy recovery. Further, the building uses high efficiency water heaters, while operable windows provide alternate means of ventilation in case of power outage or HVAC failures. Other features that enhance the building’s positive effect on the surrounding environment include such provisions for alternate transportation as bicycle storage and changing rooms, charging equipment for alternate fuel vehicles and more.

Because of the significant environmental and energy-conserving strategies employed in the building’s design, the County is developing an educational program to use it as a “teaching tool” to illustrate a wide spectrum of scientific, mathematical and social issues. Through the use of signage, tours and educational programs these “green” elements will demonstrate to students and the community at large the building’s responsible siting in the environment and the community.

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM FEATURES:
· DESIGN PROCESS; An intense participatory building planning design process included multiple community design charettes/meetings which incorporated interactive design discussions from staff, parents, neighbors, community, and county planning and zoning officials for a building in an urban context. The design strategy embraces the “New Urbanism” concepts of reinforcing human and pedestrian scale and context while trying to minimize the impact of reliance on the car.
· HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM & CAPACITY; The new facility accommodates 135 high school students in a “High School Continuation Program” where students unable to finish their education in a traditional high school setting can obtain their diploma from their original high school. The program includes a variety of classrooms, a science lab, an art lab, special education, a media center, and breakout and support spaces.
· DESIGN CONCEPT; The Langston Facility replacement project includes the demolition of an existing dysfunctional and obsolete 23,500 gross square feet (GSF) structure and construction of a new facility of approximately 50,000 GSF. The new facility will continue to house three main county programs: integrating a Continuing Education High School, a Head Start program, and a Community Recreation Center incorporating a senior citizen and teen program.
· BUILDING AS A TEACHING TOOL; The building and site are a multi-dimensional indoor/outdoor learning environment and the county is developing an educational program to use the “building as a teaching tool” to illustrate a wide spectrum of scientific, mathematical, and social issues. The sustainable elements of the school distinguish it from other buildings in the community. Through the use of signage, tours and educational programs these “green” elements will demonstrate to the community the buildings responsible siting in the environment and the community.

ORGANIZATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL AREAS;
· INTERGENERATIONAL THEMES; The project incorporates a Community Recreation Department, a senior citizen and teen program, as well as Head Start/ACAP (Arlington Community Action Program). The facility is designed to effectively address the instructional needs of the High School Continuation Program. Teachers and students will have the opportunity to work together with all of the end-users to develop intergenerational themes and activities throughout the school year.
· ADMINISTRATION; There are three administrative suites serving the facility. Head Start is located at the main entrance of the building at the drop-off area to provide good visual monitoring of the school. The recreation administration is located by the entrance closest to the parking area. The high school administration is integrated into the third floor to be directly accessible to the students with their special needs.

CREATIVITY OF DESIGN;
· SUSTAINABLE DESIGN; Arlington County, in cooperation with Arlington Public Schools, established an early goal of a USGBC (United States Green Building Council) LEEDTM (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certified Silver Rating. The school was the first building in Virginia to obtain a LEED rating (Silver) on September 3, 2003. A number of sustainable design stratagies have been utilized in the building. The use of solar shading devices both minimizes the opportunity for heat gain and allows for indirect day lighting strategies. An optimally designed building system assisted in the creation of an energy efficient and environmentally friendly HVAC system. Waterless urinals, low-flow faucets and water closets are all utilized to reduce potable water consumption. Natural day light and views are provided from each of the instructional spaces, as well as the majority of non-instructional spaces. The Third floor incorporates the use of clearstory windows to provide the upper level instructional spaces with natural light. Only low VOC materials, adhesives, sealants, and paints have been specified and approved for use. Carpool and van spaces, as well as bicycling and a shower facility has also been included to encourage alternative means of transportation. This limits the use of rapidly depleting fossil fuels and assists in establishing a cleaner and healthier urban environment.
COMMUNITY USES;
· This is a joint use facility integrating county programs including a Community Recreation Department, a senior citizen and teen program, as well as Head Start/ACAP (Arlington Community Action Program). This decision was based on a county vision to provide community services in a sustainable way by integrating county services in on one site rather than a multiple site development approach. The new configuration provided for the maximization of usable interior and exterior spaces on the site. The Site now also better accommodates community use and accessibility to existing fields while incorporating a tennis court and basket ball court for school and community use.

UNUSUAL SITE CONSIDERATIONS:
· SUSTAINABLE SITE DEVELOPMENT; As part of an effort to effectively manage storm water onsite, pervious parking spaces are included in the parking lot. Two Rainwater Reclamation Tanks are located adjacent to the front and rear of the facility. These tanks serve to manage storm water runoff by collecting rainwater for on-site irrigation. A Bio-Retention Facility collects and filters storm water runoff from the impervious play/court areas. Another implemented storm water management strategy is the installation of a Stormceptor filtration structure. This structure has been designed and installed on the Langston site to intercept and filter water runoff from an adjacent fast food commercial site. On site parking is visually minimized by breaking up the layout with islands, shade trees and shrubs. In addition, site and building lighting has been designed to eliminate night sky light pollution and light spillage from the site.
TECHNICAL INFORMATION:
· TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION; Structural Steel construction with masonry partitions and a brick and block exterior skin.
· BUILDING MATERIALS; Exterior brick with concrete block back-up and masonry accent with coated aluminum window and clerestory frames with painted hollow metal doors (insulated) and frames. Interior partitions are primarily painted CMU and some painted drywall with wood doors throughout.
· MECHANICAL SYSTEMS; An optimally designed building system provides an energy efficient and environmentally friendly HVAC system consisting of Roof top units with ducted forced air and a main mechanical room and a exterior chiller and cooling tower.
FLEXIBILITY;
· The programming process identified the defined flexibility of shared spaces to accommodate multiple programs needs from the various county users of the building. The building construction was as well designed to accommodate the structural loading of any future reconfiguring of the interior concrete block walls by increasing the floor structural systems.
INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM
· Telecommunications and data systems were the latest state-of-the-art systems, at the time of installation. (Interactive programs are realized through data and cable networks between the schools).

Educator Narrative

The High School Continuation Program is a flexible program that allows high school students to take courses needed to acquire the credits needed for graduation. Although student take course in this program, graduating seniors receive a high school diploma from their neighborhood school.

As a result of working in a program that is kept small by design, teachers have developed a family type supportive atmosphere. They have also developed the skills to teach extremely divers students more than one subject in any given classroom setting, an ability necessary to a small program. They are able to individualize instruction and assignments to better meet the assorted needs of our student body.

Since its inception in 1929, the High School Continuation Program has offered students an alternative way to earn a high school diploma. Although students are responsible to the same course requirements, numbers of credits, and SOL assessment verification as students in the comprehensive high schools, the program offers flexibility in the way and timeframe in which students can earn a high school diploma. Important information includes:

· Students are able to earn six or seven credits in a year.
· The program is divided into two semesters, and students may take one, two, or three two-hour classes each semester.
· The financial cost to students vary with age, for details click below on a link to a school
· Students may refer themselves to the program; the comprehensive high school may refer students; the courts may refer students.
· Students must be at least 16 years of age to enter the HSCP; there is no upper age limit.

The Langston facility is a multi use facility with the following programs:
· Arlington Community Action Program (ACAP)
· Headstart — For Children ages 3 to 5
· Recreation Program - Hours 3:00pm to 10:00pm
· Senior Citizens Program - Hours 9:30am to 3:00pm
· The High School Continuation Program

During the year each of the programs interact with each other in an multi-generational educational program established to make a connection between the groups within the space.

The high school continuation program is an alternative educational option for high school students throughout the Arlington Community. Our enrollment varies between 80 and 110 students each semester. The average age of the student’s is 18 years and 5 months. The student to teacher ratio is 14 to 1 in most of the classes.

The atmosphere at Langston is warm and inviting. We pride ourselves on making a difference by caring for our students and by providing a quality educational experience. Many of our students go on to higher education (4 year college, 2-year college, the Military or they advance in the work place).

If a student has a special education designation an IEP must be scheduled to determine the student’s placement (Special education students must be monitoring status only):

· ESOL/HILT students can enroll in the following courses:
HILT A, HILT B, HILTEXA English or HILTEX B English only Academic
Requirements
· Students must earn the same graduation requirements as the comprehensive high
schools
· 4 English — 3 Science — 3 History — 3 Math (Algebra and above) 2 PE — 1 Fine Art and
6 Electives
· Students must earn required verified SOL credits
· Students may enroll in one, two or three classes
· Each class is a two- (2) hour block everyday
· Students may enroll in an Internet based independent study program
· Students can also earn a Service Learning Credit and a Work Credit -