This 147,000 square foot former District of Columbia public school building was renovated to serve more than 1,000 pre-K-12th grade KIPP DC students. The original
building was constructed in 1950 as a segregated public school. The renovation needed to meet the needs of a
modern facility but retain the essence of Fredrick Douglass Middle School as a
community landmark and historic structure.
Because
the school houses a wide age range of students, from three to eighteen years
old , it is important that the single building operate as a campus, with
multiple entrances and different circulation routes for the different age
students. A separate pre-school entrance
and vehicular drop-off at is provided at the west end of the building with a new
open glass main lobby entrance for visitors and guests at the center of the
elevation. The elementary and middle
school entrances are defined by adding a vertical opening of glass at the stair
entries.