ERIC ED466093: New Schools for Older Neighborhoods: Strategies for Building Our Communities' Most Important Assets.

27 Pages·0.82 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
EF 006 087
ED 466 093
Kauth, Ann
AUTHOR
New Schools for Older Neighborhoods: Strategies for Building
TITLE
Our Communities' Most Important Assets.
Local Government Commission, Sacramento, CA.
INSTITUTION
National Association of Realtors, Washington, DC.
SPONS AGENCY
PUB DATE
2002-01-00
25p.; Produced with assistance from Adam Marcux, Judy
NOTE
Corbett, Dave Davis, and Paul Zykofsky. Some photographs may
not reproduce adequately.
Evaluative (142)
Reports
PUB TYPE
MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.
EDRS PRICE
*Building Innovation; Community Involvement; *Educational
DESCRIPTORS
Facilities Design; Educational Facilities Planning;
Elementary Secondary Education; Neighborhood Improvement;
*Neighborhood Schools; Neighborhoods; *School Buildings;
School Construction; *Space Utilization
ABSTRACT
The case studies in this booklet highlight how five
communities, in big cities and small towns, overcame the obstacles inherent
in creating good new schools in existing neighborhoods. These studies
illustrate the creativity that people across the United States have brought
to the task of creating new schools in older neighborhoods. There is mounting
evidence that small schools provide a better quality education than large
ones. Among the obstacles faced in establishing new schools in old areas are:
(2) difficulty in
(1) school building standards, codes, and regulations;
(3) districts have lost the skill to build schools; and (4)
acquiring land;
building "greenfield" schools is more familiar. The Oyster School in
Washington, D.C., is an example of a school modernized through parent efforts
when the school system was not able to find the funds for improvement of the
facility. Sharing the existing space with an apartment building, at the cost
of some space, resulted in a renovated school. In Pomona, California, a
school was built at the site of a mall and vacant supermarket. A magnet-type
school was built in Dallas, Texas, on the last piece of undeveloped land near
a multifamily apartment complex. Two public academies were established in
downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee, to attract children whose parents work in
town and ensure that both the academies were filled to capacity. Rebuilding
on the site of an old school was the solution for Manitowoc, Wisconsin, as it
worked to meet the needs of a neighborhood. Some other examples of noteworthy
approaches to new schools for old communities are briefly outlined. Such
efforts can be models and inspirations for other communities.
(SLD)
Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made
from the original document.
"Ce
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LS
C
F R
OL
ER
Aces.
STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING
OUR COMMUNITIES' MOST
IMPORTANT ASSETS
U S DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Educational Research and Improvement
PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND
VED CATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION
00
DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS
CENTER (ERIC)
BEEN GRANTED BY
This document has been reproduced as
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received from the person or organization
originating it
Co
Joseph R. Molinaro
Minor changes have been made to
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improve reproduction quality
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Points of view or opinions stated in this
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
document do not necessarily represent
INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)
official OERI position or policy
LLI
1
produced by
Local
Government
Commission
NATIONAL ASSOCIATIONemitici
Real Strength.
OF REALTORS'
Real Advantages.
The Voice for Real Estate-
Acknowledgements
This publication was made possible with the help of many individuals
who gave generously of their time and information:
Constance Beaumont
Bob McNamara
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
National Trust for
Historic Preservation
OF REALTORS®
Jack Murrah
Robert Bostic
Richardson Independent
President, Lyndhurst Foundation
School District
Jim O'Dell
Produced by
Jeff Bray
Crye-Leike REALTORS®
Local Government
Bray Associates Architects, Inc.
Damian O'Doherty
Commission
DuWayne Brooks
Washington, DC Association
Ann Kauth
writing
State of California,
of REALTORS®
Adam Marcus
research
Department of Education
Kathy Patterson
Judy Corbett
editing
Kathryn Clarke Albright
Council of the District of Columbia
Dave Davis
College of Architecture and
Emmanuelle Reynolds
Paul Zykofsky
Urban Studies, Virginia
Pomona Unified School District
Dave Davis
Polytechnic Institute
design
Bill Ruh
David Crockett
1414 K St., Suite 600
Citrus Valley Association of
The Chattanooga Institute
Sacramento, CA 95814-3966
REALTORS®
[phone]
www.lgc.org
Mark Dempsey
Francie Ryder
Independent Planning Consultant
Chattanooga Association
Sponsored by
Mary Filardo
of REALTORS®
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
21st Century School Fund
Jeff Schulz
OF REALTORS®
Jason Franklin
Manitowoc Public School District
Project manager:
21st Century School Fund
Joanne Smith
Joseph R. Molinaro, AICP
Joan Graff
Hamilton County Schools
Smart Growth Representative
Manitowoc Public School District
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Tim Smith
OF REALTORS®
LCOR
Ray Haen
700 11th St., NW
Bray Associates Architects, Inc.
Michael Stepner
Washington, DC 20001
Karen Hundt, AICP
Director of Land Use & Housing,
1.800.874.6500
The Urban Design Center
San Diego Regional Economic
www.REALTOR.org
Development Corporation
Steve Kleinfeldt
Manitowoc Public School District
David Tiffen
published January 2002
Richardson Independent
Ellen Larson
School District
Sustainable Buildings
© 2002 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
OF REALTORS°
Industry Council
Ed Walsh
Pomona Unified School DistriCt
Jacqueline Leavy
A. J. Wilson
Neighborhood Capitol
It
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Budget Group
Pomona Valley Education
OF REALTORS.
Foundation
Isela Lovato
The Voice for Real Estate
REALTOR°
Pomona Unified School District
Ron Young
Pomona Unified School District
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
NEW SCHOOLS
FOR OLDER
NEIGHBORHOODS
STRATEGIES FOR BUILDING
OUR COMMUNITY'S MOST
IMPORTANT ASSETS
0
pen a new school in a retail mall, build an
apartment complex to finance school renova-
tions, keep the school open while rebuilding
on-site, target a magnet-school design for a
densely populated neighborhood, forge a coalition with the
local university and philanthropic organizations.
Diverse case studies from
These are just a few of the innovative approaches some
around the country
communities have taken to create good new schools in
existing neighborhoods.
Dallas, Texas
Over the next decade, we need to build thousands of schools
Chattanooga, Tennessee
due to deteriorating facilities and increasing numbers of
students. While improving our educational system, these
Washington, DC
new schools in already developed areas can also improve
Manitowoc, Wisconsin
our neighborhoods by helping them become more compact,
livable and walkable.
Pomona, California
As with other challenges, however, communities face many
barriers to building schools in existing neighborhoods. The
following case studies highlight how five communities
in
big cities and small towns overcame these obstacles and
illustrate the creativity that people across the nation have
brought to this task of creating new schools in older neigh-
borhoods.
011
INTRODUCTION
n the next few
opportunity for a "Golden Age
of School Design," according to
years, America's
a 2000 U.S. Department of
school systems
Mtnitic10100L
Education report.
have
will
to
grow at an unprece-
The full potential of this oppor-
dented rate to meet a
tunity depends on what kind of
significant increase in
schools we build. We can build
school-age population.
energy-efficient schools with
Enrollment from 2000
state-of-the-art technology. We
to 2006 is expected to
can build schools with materials
increase by one million
that require much less mainte-
students, according to
U.S.
nance, making them more cost-
Department of Education esti-
effective in the long run. We can
mates. To meet this tremendous
"A higher percentage
interior
build with
schools
enrollment growth, communities
features that provide natural
of students, across all
across the country will need to
light, good indoor air quality,
both build new schools and
socio-economic levels,
and comfortable temperatures;
renovate or rebuild old, outdated
are successful when
healthy features that make our
facilities.
schools better places for stu-
they are part of smaller,
Population increase is not the
dents to learn and educators to
more intimate learning
only factor in play in the need
teach.
for new school facilities and
communities.
As communities look for innov-
school modernization. In many
ative ways to
create
these
Security improves and
school districts, small mainte-
technologically advanced, cost-
nance budgets and subsequent
violence decreases, as
effective and healthy schools,
deferred maintenance strategies
does student alcohol
we also have a golden opportu-
have accelerated the decline of
nity to build neighborhood-
and drug abuse.
older school facilities. Schools
based schools schools that can
also need to be updated for tech-
Small school size en-
revitalize and stabilize
help
nology, and adapted for smaller
communities, schools that can
courages teachers to
class sizes and new teaching
help create a sense of "place" in
strategies tied to greater student
innovate and students
communities, and schools that
and staff accountability.
to participate, resulting
can play a role in making our
communities more livable and
As a result of these factors, we
in...higher grades and
walkable.
face a school building boom, an
test scores, improved
attendance rates, and
lowered dropout rates."
U.S. Department
of Education
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
10
The Need for "Neighborhood-Based" Schools
0
ver the past 30
Educators differ on the
years, most new
optimal size of these small
ci
schools but most agree that
schools have been
Vrt
t
built in suburban
they should house between
300 and 900 students.
school districts. Typically, these
SCHOOL
schools are big, non-descript,
Concerns about the
one-story facilities on large plots
Health of Youth
of land located on the fringe of
urban development. School dis-
the
to
According
Centers for Disease
tricts have been lured by these
Control and Prevention,
"mega- schools," believing that
they are more cost-effective.
one in five children and one in
However, there
renewed
three teens are overweight or at
is
interest in returning to smaller,
risk for being overweight
a 50-
neighborhood-based
schools.
100% increase in just 10 years.
There are many reasons for this:
Many attribute this increase in
,II
overweight children to the lack
'
Small Schools Are Better
of physical activity that the built
environment children
There is mounting evidence
offers
that smaller schools pro-
today.
I I
'
I
vide a better quality education
II
Public health officials and walk-
i
I
than large ones.
ing and bicycling advocates are
"A higher percentage of stu-
now encouraging local govern-
ment and other
dents, across all socioeconomic
leaders
to
levels, are successful when they
change the way we design and
II
are part of smaller, more inti-
build our communities to pro-
mate learning communities,"
mote more physical activity.
said a recent U.S. Department
One such change they advocate
of Education study. "Security
is the expansion of neighbor-
hood-based schools and "safe
improves and violence decreas-
es, as does student alcohol and
routes to school."
drug abuse. Small school size
encourages teachers to innovate
and students to
How Kids Get to School: Now and Then
participate,
resulting in...higher grades and
Trips to school by walking and bicycling have decreased by 40%
test scores, improved attendance
in the past 20 years. Among children aged 5 to 15, nearly half are
rates, and lowered drop-out
driven to school in cars, another third take a bus, about 13% bike
rates."
to school, and only 10% walk to school.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
INTRODUCTION
curb sprawl and create less
Push for Schools to
Serve Multiple Purposes
auto-dependent, more walkable,
communities. Neigh-
livable
All over the U.S., educators
borhood schools are considered
and community leaders are
an essential part of these livable
advocating
community
for
communities.
ones that not only edu-
schools
cate children, but meet other
Urban Revitalization
community needs as well. Joint
More and more community
community use of school facili-
leaders are recognizing
is cost-effective, promotes
ties
the power of schools to attract
community support of
and keep residents in a neigh-
and
maxi-
schools,
borhood. Leaders in many urban
mizes an expensive
communities are building or
our
community asset
renovating schools as part of
schools.
broader strategies for revitaliz-
Maximize
ing blighted areas.
Public Resources
Nowhere to Grow
There is also a push
Many school districts have
for schools to be
no other choice than to
more cost effective by
build schools
established
in
utilizing other pub-
areas because there is simply no
lic/private resources. For exam-
Many school districts
new land in their districts to
ple, schools can partner with
have no other choice
develop. These school districts
park districts to use a city park
are finding unusual places to
their
playground
to
fulfill
than to build schools
in old strip
put new schools
requirements or use a YMCA
in established areas
malls, on top of parking garages,
gymnasium instead of having to
because there is simply
and in small, odd-shaped parcels
build one as part of a school
of land.
campus.
no new land in their
districts to develop.
Smart Growth
These districts are
Across the country, smart
growth advocates are urg-
finding unusual places
ing local decision-makers to
to put new schools
in
old strip malls, on top
of parking garages, and
in small, oddly-shaped
parcels of land.
7
4
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
l
Barriers to Building Schools in Established Areas
Districts Have
While districts have
Lost the Skills
many reasons
to Build Schools
for building and/
or modernizing
Some districts have
not built schools
schools in established areas, they
in such a long time,
also face many obstacles.
they've simply lost the
School Building Standards,
staff expertise needed
Codes and Regulations
a new
manage
to
chool building codes and
building project, or even a large
S
project to modernize school
regulations can work against
the building and renovating
facilities.
of schools in established neigh-
Building "Greenfield"
Funding, parking
borhoods.
Schools Is More Familiar
requirements, acreage-to-student
I
ratios and other regulations
n some school districts,
it
often make it difficult to build
isn't that they haven't built
schools on smaller plots in older,
schools in many years, the prob-
lem is that they've only built
already established areas.
"greenfield" schools, making it
Many older schools also get
challenging for them to "change
,
,
slated for demolition rather than
their ways" and build new
renovation because of the diffi-
schools in already established
culty in complying with school
areas.
and building code regulations.
Difficulty in Acquiring Land
Many districts, particularly
Overcoming Barriers: Case Studies
in more urban areas,
have trouble finding land that
has not been contaminated in
Communities all over the country are overcoming these
some way. The reluctance of
barriers and getting innovative neighborhood-based
governments to use eminent
schools built that buck the "mega-school" trend and
domain powers (taking land and
serve as true community resources. The case studies
paying property owners market
that follow highlight five such efforts and offer some successful
value for it) has increased the
strategies for building new schools in older neighborhoods.
difficulty of acquiring land for
schools as well.
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
CASE STUDY
1
Parental Perseverance Pays Off
James E Oyster
Bilingual
to get the necessary funds for
Woodley Park is a
the school.
highly desirable,
Elementary
upper-middle
By 1994, the parents concluded
School
class, residential
that the idea of a public/private
neighborhood in Washington,
development partnership was
DC. It
is home to James E
feasible. They brought their
Washington, DC
Oyster Bilingual Elementary
then-Superintendent
idea
to
School, a school known for its
Franklin Smith. He supported
dual English-Spanish language
the idea and worked diligently
program and whose enrollment
against school board reluctance
area includes not only the
to adopt a policy that allowed
Woodley Park neighborhood
the use of such a partnership to
but
Adams-
also
modernize schools.
a lower-
Morgan
Once adopted, a group of Oyster
income, Latino neigh-
R
parents and other community
111
borhood.
activists created the 21st Cen-
In the early 1990's,
tury School Fund to manage the
though its
bilingual
partnership to modernize Oyster.
program
academic
Over the next five-and-a-half
Oyster's
flourished,
years the 21st Century School
plant
physical
was
Fund
Ford
(backed
by
severely deteriorated
Foundation funding) labored to
and the school was
create a public/private partner-
overcrowded. Conditions were
ship and a new school. In 1998,
so bad that Oyster parents orga-
an agreement was made with
nized to inventory the school's
LCOR, a private property de-
The community-driven
needs and petition the District
velopment firm, to build an
of Columbia Public Schools
process survived three
apartment building on half of
(DCPS)
modernize
the
to
DC mayors, four super-
the land.
The school
school. system,
intendents, four school
strapped financially, could do
In exchange for the land and in
nothing to help. Determined to
lieu of property taxes, LCOR
board reorganizations
improve the school, Oyster par-
agreed to pay the debt service
(including one in which
ents got the DCPS' blessing to
on the bond that would be used
Congress took over the
look for alternative funds to
to design, construct, and furnish
a new Oyster School. LCOR
modernize the facility.
DC school system) and
also agreed to set aside $445,000
seven project managers.
Oyster School sat on 1.67 acres
of seed money to fund other DC
of land in a highly desirable
school modernization projects.
neighborhood in the middle of
Washington, DC. Recognizing
In 1998, space was located in a
school district facility across
the value of this land, Oyster
temporarily
town
to
house
parents came up with the idea of
entering into a public/private
Oyster students and,: in 1999,
the Oyster School bond was
development deal.so sell part of
Soon after,
the
the school's land-tol'developers
issued.
old
6
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS
Also key to the pro-
school was demolished and con-
ject's success was the
struction began on a new facility.
commitment and per-
The new school was rebuilt,
r
severance of the Oys-
rather than renovated, to make
ter School community,
the best use of a piece of land
particularly
parents
now only half the size of its for-
and staff.
mer site. On the remaining half,
LCOR built a 211-unit,
The process for mod-
11-
story apartment building (photo
ernizing Oyster School
took nine years. The
at right).
community-driven
Though the development deal
process survived three mayors,
required Oyster School to make
four superintendents, four school
sacrifices (including a signifi-
II
board reorganizations (includ-
cantly smaller playground), the
ing one in which Congress took
Oyster community, in return,
over the DC school system) and
got a new school specifically
seven project managers.
designed to support its bilingual
Through it all, Oyster parents,
education program.
I
staff and community members
The key to the success of this
worked creatively and diligently
public/private development was
to overcome barriers and set-
the value, size and location of
I'
backs. In the process, Oyster
Oyster's land. Had the site been
created
the
activists
21st
smaller, differently shaped, or in
Century School Fund, whose
II
a less-desirable neighborhood,
mission is to "build the public
LCOR could not have generat-
will and capacity to improve
'
ed a profit on the project and no
urban public school facilities."
public/private partnership deal
The organization now helps
could have been made.
communities and school districts
I I
nationwide to create and fund
school modernization programs
School Profile
James F. Oyster School
Washington, DC
School District: District of
Columbia Public Schools
Date of Completion: June 2001
r
PreK-6
Grades Served:
Student Population:
350
900 sf
Avg. Classroom Size:
47,984 sf
School Size:
Number of Floors:
4
Site Size:
0.79 acres
10
it.k12.dc.us/
Website:
OYSTER/oyster.html
NEW SCHOOLS FOR OLDER
NEIGHBORHOODS