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School Board to See Proposed Western PW High School, Middle School Designs

Posted
Staff
The School Board will get its first look at the proposed designs for two new schools in western Prince William County Apr. 2. Board members will select among existing building prototypes for the proposed 13th Prince William County high school and Linton Hall area middle school. The new high school will either feature a similar design to Patriot High School (312,067 gross sq. ft.), designed in 2009, or Freedom/Battlefield High Schools (277,994 gross sq. ft.), designed in 2002. According to presentation materials, the differences between the prototypes include:
  • Typical classrooms are approximately 50 sq. ft. larger in Patriot prototype to meet DOE recommendations
  • Auditorium at Patriot prototype was increased for 200 more seats
  • The weight room from the earlier prototype was modified to become a fitness center due to changes in the curriculum
  • More space is dedicated to circulation due to the configuration to allow natural daylight to classrooms
  • An additional courtyard was provided in the Patriot prototype to allow for natural daylight to more spaces
  • An additional health classroom was provided in the Patriot prototype to meet current curriculum needs
Despite increased costs for constructing the Patriot prototype over the older Freedom/Battlefield High Schools design, staff will recommend utilizing the Patriot design.
"More recent high schools have higher sq. ft. per student (schools are generally larger)," David Cline, Associate Superintendent Finance and Support Services, will note in the presentation. "Northern VA high schools tend to be more expensive to build than other parts of the state."
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The School Board will also consider whether to construct the proposed Western Middle School (Linton Hall Area) using a design that has been in use in the county since 1987 or develop a new prototype.
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The existing design was created in 1985-86 to for Saunders Middle School. The school division has constructed nine other middle schools using this design, the last being Reagan Middle School.
Citing anticipated middle school enrollment increases from 1,233 to 1,464 students over the next ten years, staff recommends the development of a new middle school design prototype.
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The School Division cited opportunities to:
  • Expand classroom size to meet current DOE Guidelines
  • Expand Health and PE areas to meet new capacities, as well as new expanded curriculum requirements
  • Provide natural daylight in the majority of the classroom space
  • Develop a two story design to maximize property use and be consistent with current elementary and high school designs
  • Provide a potential large group space with stage for assemblies, testing, and performances
  • Develop specialty spaces such as science, art, and CTE to better serve current curriculum requirements
The School Board will vote on these design plans at a meeting at a later date. The Linton Hall area middle school and 13th Prince William County high school are scheduled to open in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
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