Sherman Carter Barnhart Architects unveiled designs Tuesday for a remodeled Boyd County Middle School they say will be safer, more attractive and better designed for teaching and learning.
The school will have more windows and open areas and better security at its entrances. Traffic patterns will be reconfigured to make bus and car traffic more orderly, and to keep children safe during the peak traffic hours, architects told the school board.
Classrooms will be located as much as possible at the perimeter of the school to take advantage of natural light. Work on the gymnasium will correct structural issues in the walls and bring it into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Floor plan changes will accommodate the school’s existing and long-standing team teaching approach and most classrooms will remain in the same areas as they are now, with emphasis on locating as many as possible at the perimeter and the addition of large windows, said project manager Kevin Cheek of the Smith Carter Barnhart architectural firm.
The library will have large windows to add to a sense of openness and spaciousness. Seating capacity of the cafeteria will be increased and the kitchen will be enlarged.
The stage and sunken area adjacent to it will be leveled out but the area will be retained as a stage and fitted for theatrical lights and curtains.
An art room and exterior art patio at the front of the building will serve as a visual accent.
The upper level of the gymnasium walls will be removed and replaced to correct a structural issue. A lobby entrance with stairs and an elevator will lead to a new balcony on the upper level that will have access to seating areas, making it accessible to disabled people.
New lockers will be wider to accommodate backpacks that most students carry. Some lockers will be in double tiers and some in a single lower tier, an arrangement meant to serve students of varying ages and heights.
Outside, a bus loop on the U.S. 60 side will lead to a student entrance. Widened auto lanes on the other side will route parent drop-off vehicles to a rear entrance and make it easier for autos to enter and exit the property.
A new front entrance will incorporate a security vestibule monitored from the administration area, which will be moved to the area beside it. The entrance will use a buzz-in system.
A number of existing entrances from rooms on the perimeter will be eliminated and remaining entrances, other than the three main ones, will be exit-only. The entrances will have distinctive facades and will be connected to a sensor system so school officials will know if they have been opened or are left opened.
Blue security lights at each entrance will alert police, emergency workers and others, such as bus drivers, if the school is in a lockdown. The facades will immediately alert emergency workers to access points.
Once the Kentucky Department of Education approves the initial design, architects will refine it with details for each room, Cheek said. Architects will confer with faculty and staff during the process.
MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2652.
