Trailside Elementary School

Narratives

Architect Narrative

This new Elementary School is the result of a design collaboration between the architect, school administrators, teachers, building maintenance personnel, and a community based building committee. At the architect’s persuasion, students were invited and became active participants at each step of the process. Historically, the community has extensive grass-roots participation from their citizens. City Officials, County Commissioners, various government agencies and particularly School Board Representatives are continuing to be asked to reach out to the community in all of their future planning and public policies.

Academic excellence and interdisciplinary learning have long been the basis and the heart of the School District’s mission. The design/building committee was given the challenge of “creating an educational environment that utilizes state-of-the-art technology, enhances learning experience, respects the historical heritage of the past, and reaches out to embrace the future”. The committee voiced concern that the buildings aesthetics not be “too modern” or “too high tech”, but rather it be a building that was sensitive to the environment. Additionally, the design team felt the building should be something the students could learn from and appreciate. Emphasis was placed on a structure that reflected the past, yet showed encouragement and enthusiasm for the future.

The input from the building committee requested the school not be a standard egg-crate, double loaded corridor. Unique classroom clusters (houses) that divide the 715 student school into smaller, more intimate educational environment. The classroom clusters surround a multi-use area that is used for interdisciplinary teaching and collaboration amongst students and teachers. These collaboration areas include a group-kiva for reading, a wet area for science and art projects and a computer area for 12 to 15 students. The committee embraced the concept of a central space that could be used for tutors, volunteer parent groups (or individuals) and interactive spaces for a multitude of uses. The committee requested of the architect to provide spaces for computer teaching and computer accessibility immediately adjacent to all classrooms.

The sloping site created, at first, a challenge to keep the school on one level without excessive site costs. In the end, this challenge in fact, became part of the solution by clearly separating the public/multi-use spaces from the academic/classroom/learning spaces. The buildings five-foot step utilized the topography to save costs, and in turn created an open, inviting and interactive school.

The exterior design reflects the shapes, colors, materials and textures of historical mining buildings that are very important to the local communities’ heritage. The link from past to future is tied together by reflecting these historical elements through the use of modern materials. Experiencing the buildings various exterior shapes, colors and textures teaches science, physics, math and colors. In the end, the new school has become a teaching tool itself.

Educator Narrative

Trailside Elementary School is a building designed to facilitate the teaching / learning process. From the “open” feel of the natural lighting and instructional kivas, to the outdoor amphitheater and wireless technology stations, students are actively engaged in discovery and knowledge acquisition.

Classrooms grouped around large instructional “pads”, wireless technology stations and teacher workrooms provide structure for students and staff to collaborate, to team, and to develop critical skills to prepare them for life in the digital age.

The mining theme that permeates our school ties our students to those who lived here before. Mining towers and stratified rock walls have become tools to help our students understand their past and dream about their future. Trailside has developed into a Learning Community that encourages its staff, students and families to work together on this educational journey.