Title: Fuller Elementary School
Location of Proejct: Raleigh, NC
Project Completion Date: 05/27/2022
Firm Name: Davis Kane Architect

Short Description: The Fuller Elementary School is a magnet school offering students a myriad of academic and artistic disciplines. The integral design elements of the school evolved from extensive community involvement and the school’s mission to facilitate multi-faceted learning. Daylight-filled spaces, shared collaborative learning commons between classrooms, observation rooms for parental involvement, integrated outdoor learning spaces, along with an exhibition of magnet resources are some of the fundamental aspects of this school. The interior building finishes use bright colors and fun shapes that bring about an energetic, vibrant atmosphere and are also incorporated with varying scales of flexible, playful seating areas.

Architect's Statement: Fuller Elementary School (ES) is a magnet school for both Gifted & Talented Programs and Academically & Intellectually Gifted Programs. It offers students a myriad of academic and artistic disciplines designed as opportunities to discover and enhance their unique gifts and talents. Drawing a student population from all reaches of Wake County, the new building and site design accommodates the recruitment and successful welcoming of local and commuter students, while celebrating the long-standing neighborhood community that has supported the school’s innovative development.

A major design challenge posed was how to thoroughly understand the heartbeat of the school as a specialized magnet elementary school before commencing design. In phase one of this project we, Davis Kane Architects, worked with Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) and delved into the fabric of Fuller ES. A series of Visioning Sessions were held separately with the teachers & staff, the parents & neighbors, and the students, to gain the community’s perspective. This gave the stakeholders a platform to share their ideas and to express the importance of this facility in their community. The goal of these sessions brought forth the possibilities of the future through discussions of the present. Simultaneously, a thorough evaluation of the existing site, buildings, and the school’s current and future needs was carried out. Our team also investigated the existing facilities considering WCPSS Space Standards, WCPSS Learning Environment Guidelines, NCDPI Facilities Guidelines, and the 2012 North Carolina State Building Codes. Through this research, WCPSS was able to create budget, program, and project schedule exhibits for the Design and Construction projects at Fuller ES. After listening to the input and ideas provided by community members, a new school building was recommended to meet the school’s needs functionally, academically, aesthetically, culturally, and socially. The ultimate decision made by the Wake County Board of Education was to demolish the existing facilities and replace the school with all new construction and site design.

Phase two of the project included the design and construction of the improved Fuller ES campus that would accommodate the growing community. The new building contains 46 teaching spaces (including the additional teaching spaces to support the school’s magnet programs) and approximately 103,000 SF of building on a 15-acre property.

Working with a constrained site, limited by steep, tree-covered hillside slopes down to wetlands, designing a building footprint that fits the site was a tremendous challenge. An inverted T-shaped building footprint was developed, and the 2-story classroom axis was oriented east-west for optimal daylighting. The north/south-oriented wing houses the indoor play area, dining, and “noisy” classrooms, including the music rooms. A new site entrance on State Street presented the opportunity to relocate the carpool queuing from the neighborhood streets onto the school property alleviating the congestion problems within the surrounding neighborhood. We separated the service drive, bus unloading/loading, staff parking, carpool drop-off/pick-up, and play areas into five distinct areas on the site to avoid congestion between these functions and improve the safety of the students. The resulting configuration of the carpool drive nestled into the hillside slope, allowed us to provide the bright, welcoming, south-facing entry.
The school’s learning spaces are designed to support multi-faceted learning. All the classrooms receive ample daylight, they look out into the surrounding natural landscape, and the classrooms on the first floor open out directly into play areas or outdoor learning spaces. Furthermore, there are shared collaborative learning commons between classrooms that serve as flexible learning spaces and are provided with mobile furniture that can easily be reconfigured in diverse ways. Observation rooms are provided between the Pre-K Classrooms to allow for parental involvement. The magnet resources are also exhibited throughout the school.
The interior building finishes use bright colors and fun shapes that create a vibrant and energetic atmosphere for elementary school students. Way-finding elements are integrated into the flooring patterns, and wall colors. A variety of playful and warm seating corners in fun shapes are spread throughout the school. These spaces vary in scale and size - providing quiet and private individual study spaces, and spaces for small or large group study spaces.
The new elementary school provides a beacon of light for the community, students, and staff by offering an improved learning environment and haven for the neighborhood.