Reading Schools challenged VSWC to replace four outdated schools with one new PK-12 school on a tight, sloping, irregular shaped site surrounded by residences. Separating elementary, middle and high school grades within the building and providing separate entries, offices and traffic patterns also became a high priority.

The design solution utilizes the sloping site to create a layered three-story building with the elementary school on the ground level, intermediate/middle and common facilities on the first floor and high school on the second floor. The building is divided into distinct grade-level communities, each including six classrooms with glass garage doors opening to an arched- ceiling extended learning area and two small-group/tutor/intervention rooms. Teachers were instrumental in planning these spaces and love the teaching flexibility the concept provides.

A two-story, multi-use commons creates a focal point and serves as dining, theater, and lobby space for athletic events. A grand staircase links the three academic floors and provides views into the adjacent two-level media center.
The school exterior is constructed of brick-inlaid precast concrete panels. The triple arches at the main entry recall a historic Reading School while the tower windows create the effect of “a beacon on the hill”. Both outside and inside, VSWC Architects delivered a school beyond community expectations.