Legat Architects Jefferson Early Childhood Center

Jefferson Early Childhood Center encourages exploration, environmental education, and peer interaction for students of all developmental stages. Evidence of the facility’s focus on early learners appears in everything from the playful facade and classroom window placement to the energetic color scheme and quiet HVAC system. The efficient design reduces construction costs, and an energy-efficient geothermal system lowers heating and cooling costs.

“The new Jefferson Early Childhood Center was carefully designed to meet the unique, diverse needs of the students in our community. Our students, parents, and staff are incredibly pleased with the new building.”
- Dr. Jeff Schuler, Superintendent, District 200

Inspiration
Legat Architects’ designers drew inspiration not only from administrators, teachers, and parents, but also from community members and specialists ranging from physical and occupational therapists to speech and language pathologists. The 43,000-square-foot center offers 16 classrooms, physical therapy space, and a sensory-motor room, as well as a community welcome center and resource room for parent education. Outdoor courtyard and playground areas are on display throughout the building.

Ergonomic Transposition
Designers used a process called “ergonomic transposition,” which considers how small children experience the facility. Windows are aligned to create moments of discovery. Whereas some areas allow students to see through the building, other spots draw their attention to specific natural elements. The concept is most evident in classrooms: higher windows display sky and deliver natural light deep into the space, while lower windows reveal grass and plants. The Legat team also relied on ergonomic transposition when designing the corridor, which offers built-in benches, colorful round mats, and child-level tack boards and magnetic markerboards for breakout sessions. During planning, physical therapists revealed a need for stairs that support student practice and have a larger function. The result is a small set of corridor stairs that leads to an area where students can read or do an activity.

Parametric Design
Although the yellow and gray stripes on the exterior fiber cement panels appear random, the team put a great deal of effort into the stripes’ placement using a concept called “parametric design.” It involves feeding parameters into a computer program that produces hundreds of alternatives based on mathematical algorithms. The team then debated the options and selected the most visually appealing one. Another benefit of parametric design is minimized waste. The team encoded maximum panel sizes into the software so that any panels that were cut could be reused within the project.

Functional Design
After teachers revealed they put tape on the floor of the old Jefferson so that students knew where to line up, the interior team integrated colorful stripes into the luxury vinyl tiles within the new school’s classroom wing. Green guides students through the corridor, while blue identifies classroom locations. In the motor skills room, a large green circle on the floor echoes the elliptical shape of the concrete path in the courtyard. To create the school’s color scheme, the interiors team took cues from several local landmarks including a train station and a fountain. After the teachers suggested combining a few of the colors the team presented, it ended up with a palette that included a cheerful green, soothing blue, and upbeat yellow.