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Malibu High School
Malibu High School
Santa Monica, CA, United States
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Other Projects by Koning Eizenberg Architecture
Malibu High School
Santa Monica, CA, United States
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2025
SIZE
25,000 sqft - 100,000 sqft
BUDGET
$50M - 100M
Nestled between the Pacific Coast and the Santa Monica Mountains, Malibu High School reimagines what a public high school can be. This net-zero energy facility for 525 students on 5.7 acres engages directly with its coastal foothill setting, creating what the design team calls a "hillside laboratory" where learning extends far beyond classroom walls.
At the heart of this project is a commitment to project-based learning, a progressive educational approach that the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District championed after 28 community meetings with students, teachers, parents, and administrators. Rather than organizing the 80,000- square-foot building by traditional academic departments, the two-story structure groups subjects into collaborative "sets"—collections of science labs, art studios, maker spaces, humanities classrooms, and math programs all focused around informal teaming areas. This decompartmentalization encourages the kind of cross-disciplinary thinking that real-world projects demand.
The school's design actively challenges conventional power dynamics and social hierarchies that can make traditional schools feel isolating. Faculty workrooms are distributed throughout the building within each set, creating natural hubs where students and teachers can interact more organically. Administrative spaces are woven into the fabric of the school rather than cordoned off. The double height Commons serves as the building's social heart—a flexible, inclusive gathering space where students can dine, collaborate, study privately, or display their work. Large windows offer glimpses into active learning spaces, making education visible and celebrated.
What makes this project particularly remarkable is how it responds to its specific context and community needs. After the devastating 2018 Woolsey Fire, the Malibu community demanded fire safety as a primary design requirement. The design team worked closely with the local Fire Department to create a building constructed entirely of non-combustible materials: concrete shear walls and floors, steel columns and beams, and metal and cement panel cladding. Strategic fuel modification zones, a new fire truck access route encircling the building, and carefully planned landscaping all work together to protect the facility. The school can even serve as a community wildfire shelter.
Environmental responsibility permeates every aspect of the project. The design reinstates the site's natural topography and hydrology, eliminating the need for expensive retaining walls while reviving two acres of adjacent Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area that serves as an outdoor classroom. A totalizing canopy structure supports photovoltaic panels that bring the building to net-zero energy status while creating shaded outdoor learning spaces. Energy modeling predicts an EUI between 0-2 kBTU/sf/yr—an extraordinary achievement made possible through thoughtful passive strategies including maximized daylighting, operable windows, exterior sun louvers, a radiant heating and cooling system, and a high-performance heat recovery chiller.
Water conservation is addressed through drought-resistant native plantings, 10,561 square feet of permeable paving, and a reclaimed water system. Locally sourced concrete aggregate and weathered copper cladding provide fire resistance while echoing the rustic colors and textures of the surrounding hillside. Site walls and strategic tree placement mitigate Malibu's seasonal high winds, making outdoor learning spaces comfortable year-round.
The result is a building that grows from the landscape, blurring the boundaries between indoor and outdoor, academic and social, traditional and innovative. It honors both Malibu's natural beauty and its community's aspirations, creating a model for how sustainable, student-centered design can shape the future of public education.
At the heart of this project is a commitment to project-based learning, a progressive educational approach that the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District championed after 28 community meetings with students, teachers, parents, and administrators. Rather than organizing the 80,000- square-foot building by traditional academic departments, the two-story structure groups subjects into collaborative "sets"—collections of science labs, art studios, maker spaces, humanities classrooms, and math programs all focused around informal teaming areas. This decompartmentalization encourages the kind of cross-disciplinary thinking that real-world projects demand.
The school's design actively challenges conventional power dynamics and social hierarchies that can make traditional schools feel isolating. Faculty workrooms are distributed throughout the building within each set, creating natural hubs where students and teachers can interact more organically. Administrative spaces are woven into the fabric of the school rather than cordoned off. The double height Commons serves as the building's social heart—a flexible, inclusive gathering space where students can dine, collaborate, study privately, or display their work. Large windows offer glimpses into active learning spaces, making education visible and celebrated.
What makes this project particularly remarkable is how it responds to its specific context and community needs. After the devastating 2018 Woolsey Fire, the Malibu community demanded fire safety as a primary design requirement. The design team worked closely with the local Fire Department to create a building constructed entirely of non-combustible materials: concrete shear walls and floors, steel columns and beams, and metal and cement panel cladding. Strategic fuel modification zones, a new fire truck access route encircling the building, and carefully planned landscaping all work together to protect the facility. The school can even serve as a community wildfire shelter.
Environmental responsibility permeates every aspect of the project. The design reinstates the site's natural topography and hydrology, eliminating the need for expensive retaining walls while reviving two acres of adjacent Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area that serves as an outdoor classroom. A totalizing canopy structure supports photovoltaic panels that bring the building to net-zero energy status while creating shaded outdoor learning spaces. Energy modeling predicts an EUI between 0-2 kBTU/sf/yr—an extraordinary achievement made possible through thoughtful passive strategies including maximized daylighting, operable windows, exterior sun louvers, a radiant heating and cooling system, and a high-performance heat recovery chiller.
Water conservation is addressed through drought-resistant native plantings, 10,561 square feet of permeable paving, and a reclaimed water system. Locally sourced concrete aggregate and weathered copper cladding provide fire resistance while echoing the rustic colors and textures of the surrounding hillside. Site walls and strategic tree placement mitigate Malibu's seasonal high winds, making outdoor learning spaces comfortable year-round.
The result is a building that grows from the landscape, blurring the boundaries between indoor and outdoor, academic and social, traditional and innovative. It honors both Malibu's natural beauty and its community's aspirations, creating a model for how sustainable, student-centered design can shape the future of public education.
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