Summit Elementary School, which is the first new school to open in Natrona County School District in 25 years, has been inspired by the history of Casper. The 56,000 square feet school resembles a village and houses interactive elements such as movable furniture and gathering spaces with functions expressed by different shapes, materials and colours. It houses the ‘Village Center’ – a large indoor gathering place – that connects to communal classrooms called ‘Learning Houses’. Built to instil cross-disciplinary approach to education, the art and science faculties are combined in the ‘Creativity Studio’.
The school’s exterior reflects Casper’s high desert landscape, with striated brick and a sloping green metal roof that refers to the Laramie mountain range. A sculptural spire adorns the main entrance.
The school accommodates 450 students in Pre-K through fifth grade. It is designed according to 4/3 – there are four, Kindergarten through third grade classrooms and three, fourth and fifth grade classrooms.
The facility also incorporates sustainable elements such as space conditioning provided by a centralised heat pump geo-exchange system connected to a vertical bore field, a wind turbine and hydronic solar panels. Daylighting has been used throughout the building.
A collaborative process involving teachers, parents and students helped develop the school.
