Architecture Day at Washington, D.C.'s Brightwood Elementary School

Business Wire, April 5, 2004

Business Editors

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 5, 2004

Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects:

-- Groundbreaking Ceremony and Hands-On Workshops Where Students

Will Construct Models of Their New School

-- April 13, 2004, beginning at 10:30am

-- Brightwood Elementary School, 1300 Nicholson Street, NW,

Washington, DC

Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects (EE&K) announces the official groundbreaking for the expansion of Brightwood Elementary School. Marking the construction of the first school built directly by the District of Columbia Public Schools in nearly three decades, April 13 will be a day filled with educational activities and student participation.

The design team of architects and engineers and the building contractors will give presentations to every class, and will assist the students as they construct models of the new additions to their school. The exercises will help the students understand the construction process, as well as educate them about the structure of buildings.

Through three phases of construction, two temporary buildings will be demolished; a new "Commons Building" and classroom wing will be constructed; and the entire existing 1926-era school will be modernized.

EE&K's design for Brightwood creates an inviting atmosphere that makes the school seem like an extension of the neighborhood it belongs to. It is a place where children feel welcome and safe. Stanton Eckstut, founding principal of EE&K Architects, explains the firm's goal: "It's all about the students--and their neighborhood."

There were many concerns for Brightwood's design team, which resulted in a thoughtful, cohesive plan for a vibrant educational setting. Some highlights:

-- The interior is designed to educate: hallways become galleries

and ceiling grids become display spaces.

-- Education continues outside the classroom, with an

amphitheater and garden plots for students to tend.

-- Flexible classrooms create settings for individual, small

group and large group work, and educational technology will be

available through both wired and wireless connections.

-- The new Commons Building expands the resources of the school

and enhances its role within the community by opening the

building to neighborhood-wide use.

-- The exterior design incorporates the adjacent urban

neighborhood, ensuring that each facade of the building

complements its surroundings.