The Ninth Grade Center is phase one of a second High School for Hutto ISD. With this intent in mind, the design is expandable so that future construction will have minimal impact on the student population.
The building is laid out with educational appropriateness as the driving factor and includes collaborative learning environments that focus on flexibility, small learning communities, and student engagement.
Phase one features:
Hutto, a small town in Central Texas, is a fast-growth community with a rich history. While the community is rapidly changing, they want to stay true to their small-town roots. The design team intentionally embraced the area’s history by choosing elements of Hutto’s past to inform design decisions.
The team chose exterior materials that reflect Hutto’s history. The train running through town is an ever-present reminder of the area’s agricultural past. Corrugated metal panels are a nod to the silos at the Hutto Gin Complex and are used to break up expanses of colored brick was selected as if to blend into the old brick buildings that line the historical East Street.
The paseo frames the black box theater and was inspired by pedestrian-friendly streets and covered walkways found in many old towns throughout Texas. It will become the main entrance to the campus when phase two is complete.
The building has a curtain wall that spans the entire three-story height—allowing natural light in and creating minimal separation from the inside to the outside.
The past informed the aesthetic, but the programming and functionality speak to the future. The building will function even as instructional delivery may change.
The design accommodates growth and can expand from a 1000 to a 2400 student campus, without disrupting learning. Every wing will expand in different directions; fine arts and athletics will push north, and the academic building will expand south.
Like the building’s responsive design, learning and instructional spaces offer variety and incorporate collaborative learning areas to encourage meaningful engagement through interaction and participation. The flexibility of the design respects individual learning styles and skill sets as well as future shifts in pedagogy and enrollment.
Jessica Molter
Garrett Martin
Desmon Odunusi
Robert Kincaid
Erik Leitner
