Philip Simmons High School, Berkeley County School District
Driven by the growing needs of the community, the new Philip Simmons High School is designed with key elements of 21st Century Learning design and inspired by the local environment.
Nine thousand acres of undeveloped forested wetland surrounded the site. The forest setting informed the material palette and spatial elements, including a “technology forest” for that serves as a common area with recharging stations for the students. Its adjacency to the cafeteria through ceiling-height bay doors expands the area for dining or events.
Philip Simmons High School offers smaller learning communities or academies within the realm of a larger high school. Each core academic area surrounds a flexible workspace for group projects or independent learning. The media center houses a progressive
electronic library and a coffee shop. Secure courtyards are flexible for outdoor learning classrooms and open to the cafeteria for outside dining and visual arts program work areas.
Career and Technology Education (CTE) includes workforce classes in business and hospitality, health sciences, and engineering and technology. Learning spaces that imitate real-life environments—including a mock hotel room, hospital setting, and mechatronics lab—facilitate hands-on learning.
The campus includes a 650-seat theater, a full-size gymnasium which opens up to an auxiliary gymnasium and athletic stadium with football and softball/baseball fields and tennis courts.
Awarded:
- Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) SC Chapter, The Excellence Awards, Merit Award, 2018
- Steel Joist Institute, Unique Design Award, 2017