{"id":53322,"date":"2025-01-13T12:43:04","date_gmt":"2025-01-13T20:43:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/schoolconstructionnews.com\/?p=53322"},"modified":"2025-01-15T06:17:25","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T14:17:25","slug":"expanded-minnesota-high-school-unifies-student-body-embraces-sustainability","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/schoolconstructionnews.com\/2025\/01\/13\/expanded-minnesota-high-school-unifies-student-body-embraces-sustainability\/","title":{"rendered":"Expanded Minnesota High School Unifies Student Body, Embraces Sustainability"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Fay Harvey<\/em><\/p>\n WHITE BEAR LAKE, Minn. \u2014 After six years of planning, renovation and building, the state-of-the-art White Bear Lake High School has officially re-opened its doors to faculty, staff and students. Part o<\/span>f a $326-million districtwide facilities project, the expanded school merges modernity and practicality to bring White Bear Lake District\u2019s vision of future-focused education to life.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In 2018, St. Paul, Minn.-based Wold Architects began working with White Bear Lake School District to conduct a facilities planning assessment. A 90-member planning committee composed of community members, staff members and students was created to review facilities-related ideas, priorities and solutions, focusing on capacity, location and general improvements. A final facilities plan was adopted by the district school board and was approved by voters in November 2019. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The previous White Bear Lake High School campus was split between lower and upper grades. For the past 40 years, 9th and 10th graders attended school at the North Campus, while 11<\/span>th<\/span> and 12<\/span>th<\/span> grader students studied at the South Campus four miles south. <\/span>In collaboration with the district and Minneapolis-based Kraus-Anderson Construction, Wold Architects developed a plan to unite all students in a single facility. This involved significant additions and renovations to the existing 9th and 10<\/span>th<\/span> grade buildings, while also reimagining how students and faculty would experience education and teaching.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThis project is about more than just a building \u2014 it\u2019s about creating a future for our students that reflects the values and voices of our community,\u201d said Wayne Kazmierczak, superintendent at White Bear Lake Area Schools. \u201cBy uniting all of our high school students and staff under one campus, we\u2019ve created an environment where collaboration, growth and opportunity thrive. This school ensures that our students are not only prepared for today but are ready to meet the challenges of tomorrow, and we\u2019re proud to be in a space that honors our past while embracing the potential of our future.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The project as a whole spans 285,000 square feet of renovated space and 375,000 square feet of new construction. The remodeled three-story building now holds a capacity of 3,200 students and accounts for anticipated enrollment growth. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The design creates open, flexible spaces that empower students to take charge of their educational experience. The malleable environment fosters a sense of innovation and separates the spaces from traditional classroom concepts. Interconnected classrooms, or Learning Studios, house flexible seating arrangements for students to create their daily environment and also house career pathway programming for students. Specialty labs are sprinkled throughout the building. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe new Learning Studios, collaborative areas and dynamic seating options reflect a forward-thinking vision for how education can adapt to meet the needs of every student,\u201d said Paul Aplikowski, partner at Wold Architects. \u201cThis school stands as a testament to the community\u2019s commitment to fostering innovation, engagement and lifelong learning, and we are honored to have played a role in bringing that vision to life.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Athletics and physical fitness were heavily considered in the campus design, with the addition of multiple artificial turf athletic fields, tennis and basketball courts, and a 5,500-seat stadium with a ten-lane track. A five-station athletics field house with a 200-meter track sits to the side. Nearby, a student commons area was created for dining and learning to further unify the various grades. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A new 845-seat Performing Arts Center was the last campus addition. Inside the auditorium, Commercial Drywall Inc. installed curved walls and suspended sound clouds to ensure volume levels and sound remains controlled and pristine.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Located near a residential area, the campus includes designated areas for vehicle traffic to maximize space and comply with Central Middle School, which shares the transportation area. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While the outdated facility was upgraded with modern amenities and spaces, the foundation and history of the building were kept intact, supporting sustainability by eliminating the need to completely tear down and rebuild. Several other intentional sustainability initiatives \u2014 focused on energy efficiency, waste reduction, recycling, water conservation \u2014 were considered throughout the planning and construction phases to maintain the district\u2019s green goals. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “During the design process, we made construction decisions that would drive purposeful changes in our learning practices,” said Kazmierczak. “One of the things I\u2019m most proud of is that the benefits we anticipated are truly being realized. Student feedback about the new spaces consistently highlights aspects we identified as best-case outcomes during planning and decision making. These future-focused spaces are meeting the needs of our current students and will continue to do so for decades to come.”<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After six years of planning, renovation and building, the state-of-the-art White Bear Lake High School has officially re-opened its doors to faculty, staff and students.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53323,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20005],"tags":[23284,22574,20672,21773,23283,22638,22573],"class_list":["post-53322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-articles","tag-futureproofing","tag-kraus-anderson","tag-minnesota","tag-school-construction-2","tag-soundproofing","tag-white-bear-lake","tag-wold-architects"],"yoast_head":"\nCommunity Voices\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
The Campus Experience<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
Sustainable Planning\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n