There are upsides and downsides to every aspect of construction of the newest Federal Way schools.
Some elements have caused headaches or have been called eyesores. From the lack of carpets to the boxy designs to the heating and libraries, the district has its reasons for putting these elements in schools.
Design
The Federal Way School District has higher levels of upper respiratory issues in the schools, according to Rod Leland, director of facilities for the district. This is the reasoning behind no longer putting carpet in the schools. State rules had already changed, limiting the amount of carpet that could be put in the classrooms, but Federal Way took it a step farther by removing all the carpets in the schools. The new schools have polished concrete floors. The district has given teachers four to six carpet squares that they can place in the classroom. The squares can then be cleaned to keep the room as allergy-free as possible.
The plastic windows/walls throughout the schools are meant to let in more light. Schools built in the past have a ridge along the top of the schools, with numerous windows. These newer ones have almost no joints and are flush to the walls, meaning they are less likely to leak, a problem that occurred in the ridge style of natural light.
Vibrant color
One of the more noticeable aspects about the district’s new schools is the color. Bright oranges, purples, lime greens and hot pinks cover the walls of the newest of the elementary schools. These color combos have caused enough controversy at Valhalla that the school has already been repainted less than a year after opening.
“Clearly it’s shocking to some,” Leland said. “It does clash with Northwest trends from the ’70s to ’90s. On the other end, if you look at current architectural magazines, it’s an architectural expression of what children are fascinated with.”
Leland said that when the architects interviewed, they wanted to develop a story about children and color, and their inspiration was Crayola crayons.
Despite the complaints about the first round of schools, Leland said the district insisted that the architects not get shy with colors.
Low cost
While they may garner complaints, some of the design elements have allowed the district to build schools at nearly half the cost of other school districts, Leland said.
One of the biggest examples of this is the boxy design of the schools. By not having a typical roof, and instead having a nearly flat roof, the district can shave quite a bit off the overall cost of the school. The district can do that here because there really isn’t any danger of high snow levels, which prevents flat roof buildings in other areas, Leland said.
Another way they save money is to make smaller gyms, libraries and office spaces. Classrooms are still about the same size they were in the middle of last century, about 900 square feet.
The new schools all have separate gyms and lunchrooms, which is part of the teachers union’s contract that allows all teachers a planning period. To allow each teacher a planning period, enough spaces were needed to allow all teachers in a team the same time off. This meant having a separate area for physical education, lunch, some form of arts and library.
Another reason for the lower cost: Unlike some school districts, where teachers can give a list of things they would like to see in their classroom, Federal Way doesn’t do that. Leland said the Federal Way district allows for teacher feedback, and will make changes if needed. Some changes have even been made halfway through construction, and some changes have already been made in the designs of Sunnycrest and Lakeland elementary schools. However, there is no “wish list” for teachers, Leland said.
Library issues
One of the bigger controversies has involved spaces set aside for libraries in the schools. At Lakota Middle School, the proposed library/cafeteria caused great concern in 2008. At the middle school level, the days are broken up into periods, so teacher planning periods can be worked in easily into a certain period — unlike at elementary schools, where a teacher has students for the whole day.
Issues over the libraries came up again, as Sunnycrest and Lakeland do not have a traditional library. Leland said some aspects of the libraries have already changed since the designs were first released, at the request of staff.
The “senior/junior” libaries that were first suggested by the architect at Sunnycrest are merely an “opportunity,” Leland said. The idea is that a primary level reading room could be put in the smaller nook-like area at the far end of the school. However, Leland said that space could be used for something else.
“The community can decide how to use it,” Leland said. “It’s an example of what could be used. Labeling always locks people in.”
Lakeland will also have an open library design, where the library is a social gathering area that feeds into the hallways. There is a “gate” that can be pulled along the edge of the library if and when the school would like the area closed off.
District staff said this open library plan will allow the library to spill out into the halls if more room is needed.
“We’re finding the mindset is ‘my space,’ and these schools aren’t like that,” said Audrey Germanis, construction information coordinator for the district. “The mindset needs to change.”
Ongoing issues
At both Valhalla and Panther Lake elementary schools, there have been ongoing issues with heating. During a recent cold spell in the area, the heating systems didn’t function properly, and some staff reverted to wearing heavy coats indoors and placing space heaters at their desks. The district plans on putting the same heating system in the new schools, but hopes that adding more sensors into the concrete during construction will help eliminate the problems experienced at the other schools. Some staff spent a weekend at the schools to test the systems.
Another issue, brought on mostly by the lack of carpeting, has been sound travel in the new schools. The district has tried a couple of different ideas to quell the noise before it travels to all the classrooms. The idea for the new schools is to put in acoustical banners, which are 1.25 inches thick and are suspended. The banners can be painted to match and should help reduce the noise that races across the halls.
