The Meadow Ridge Elementary School design drew inspiration from the guiding principles behind the book, The Leader in Me, based on Franklin Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Based on the idea that every child possesses unique strengths and can be a leader, spaces reflect opportunities for students to both lead and collaborate. Presentation stairs designed into the heart of the media center, for example, give students the opportunity to teach each other while break-out spaces promote student engagement and project-based learning.

The design team took care to ensure every detail was kid-centric and easy to navigate. The school is broken into three, color-coded pods, with each featuring six classrooms grouped around a team-based collaboration space. The pod design supports spatial organization, with visual cues like colors and animals assigned to each pod. While colors playfully identify different grade-level environments, common areas like the media center bring the pod colors together into a cohesive school identity.

The state-of-the-art facility features an integrated early childhood education center, a 3,800 SF gym, dedicated music and art space, a STEM lab and a central, open media center complete with overhead doors and glass partitions to visually connect the space to the nearby cafeteria and classrooms. Two separate outdoor learning areas are also featured in the site design, created in response to the building’s geometry.

Organized in clusters, the school–which serves pre-Kindergarten through second grade–provides student engagement and learning environments that are as nimble as the people who use them. Each design element is committed to bringing a sense of community and whimsy to the space. A bold color palette makes wayfinding easy for the early learners, with each grade associated with a specific color. A warm, terracotta color on the building’s exterior complements the bold interior.

Meadow Ridge was designed with a focus on transparency and a space within space. Whether in a classroom, team center, common area, or simply walking through the corridor, the use of bold colors, thoughtful placement of windows, and strategically placed reading nooks provide a space that is continually engaging to every type of learner and teacher. "The design of the school is true art equipped with learning spaces that promote innovation and collaboration for our youngest learners," said Meadow Ridge Superintendent Greg Rabenhorst, Ed.D.