Bailey’s Upper Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences, designed by the internationally recognized firm Cooper Carry, has opened this school year as the first vertical school in the region. Cooper Carry’s design team overcame several challenges as they converted an abandoned five-story office building into Fairfax County Public Schools’ (FCPS) newest campus. Before the new school was constructed, the existing elementary school was well beyond capacity at 1,400 students, almost half of whom were housed in on-site trailers and modular classrooms. To alleviate the overcrowding, Cooper Carry’s team transformed an abandoned office building, located about a mile from the original school, to house the third, fourth, and fifth grade students. "We are thrilled to work with the school district and the community to provide creative solutions to accommodate increasing student enrollment and the decreasing availability of real estate on which to build,” said Lauren Perry Ford, architect and leader of the Education Practice Group in Cooper Carry’s Washington office. "We believe vertical school designs will become more popular in our urbanizing communities, and will provide inspiring learning spaces that our students need while preserving more land for outdoor recreation." Administrative space is located on the ground floor and classrooms ...
Bailey’s Upper Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences, designed by the internationally recognized firm Cooper Carry, has opened this school year as the first vertical school in the region. Cooper Carry’s design team overcame several challenges as they converted an abandoned five-story office building into Fairfax County Public Schools’ (FCPS) newest campus. Before the new school was constructed, the existing elementary school was well beyond capacity at 1,400 students, almost half of whom were housed in on-site trailers and modular classrooms. To alleviate the overcrowding, Cooper Carry’s team transformed an abandoned office building, located about a mile from the original school, to house the third, fourth, and fifth grade students. "We are thrilled to work with the school district and the community to provide creative solutions to accommodate increasing student enrollment and the decreasing availability of real estate on which to build,” said Lauren Perry Ford, architect and leader of the Education Practice Group in Cooper Carry’s Washington office. "We believe vertical school designs will become more popular in our urbanizing communities, and will provide inspiring learning spaces that our students need while preserving more land for outdoor recreation." Administrative space is located on the ground floor and classrooms ...