We were honored to receive a second 2021 Excellence Award from the A4LE South Carolina Chapter. Fairforest Middle, Spartanburg County School District Six, won the “Community Engagement” Citation.
The jury was impressed by the school’s progressive layout and design, mentioning the state-of-the-art, 100-seat planetarium as being particularly beneficial as a revenue generator and teaching tool. “The school’s investment in the planetarium is extraordinary and a wonderful gift to the students and the community,” said judge Annmarie Jacques, adjunct professor in the Architecture department at Clemson University.
An intricate solar system was put into the school’s colorful terrazzo floor by David Allen Company It depicts the sun and planets to scale and, using a new formula of fluorescent epoxy developed especially for this project, represents asteroids and stars. “We were inspired to make astronomy a theme for many design elements,” said MPS Project Architect Dr. Michael Chewning, AIA.
The judges also liked the school’s approach to daylighting, its “intergalactic” library ceiling, and abundance of STEAM breakout spaces. The whole building was designed to be an interactive learning environment. Congrats to our school partners and McKnight Construction Company.
