District Vision StatementOne of the goals of the Charrettes was to develop a Vision statement for the project. Brainstorming was conducted during the meetings where a
list of goals and project priorities were communicated by the district, which developed a draft vision statement in Charrette #2. The final Vision, as stated below, was finalized in Charrette #3, after feedback received from separate parent and teacher meetings.
Project Vision Statement
“Our school must be a memorable place that welcomes, reflects and supports a community of diverse learners. It will be a collaborative and inclusive place that instills a sense of belonging around a friendly focus on students and their families. The school reflects and instills all with a strong visible presentation of our values of inclusion, sustainability.” -Board StatementProject Priorities & Goals The following priorities and goals were identified through the series of Charrettes that later also developed into Campus and Planning Goals:
+ A Place that
Welcomes a Community of Diverse Learners
+ A Place that Promotes
Collaboration and a Sense of Community Building
+ A Place that leaves an imprint, motivates, and reinforces values in a visible way
+ A Place as stepping stone
+ An Environment that is
inclusive – accepts all children
+ A Place where first imprint has sense of belonging - part of family and community
+ A Place which Celebrates
Diversity+ A Place that focuses on the Learner - Students
+ A Place that is
Transparent+ An Environment that connects to the students – “kid friendly”
+ A Place with a Visible entry – Creates a sense of arrival to an elementary school
+ A Place which promotes a user friendly space – flexible, public yet private
+ A Place within the school where students may gather for
social learning+ A Place that has
identity for students to identify with place
+ A Place that is
flexible – gives students a sense of place, but can be flexible as a learning
During the Charrettes, the
Educational Planning Committee developed program goals to understand the various programming needs and/or values that would best support the learning environments. These goals are listed below:
+ Develop Flexible “Student Common(s)” Areas
+ Develop a Community Literacy Center
+ Technology Driven Programming and Planning
+ Need for Small Group spaces
+ Support collaboration, multi-grade learning
+ Support “Coaching multi-class situations”
+ Comfortable Spaces for informal student interaction
+ Develop Flexible Shared Use Spaces
+ Redefine the Media Centre/Library
+ “Hallways” are and should be “Galleries”
+ Older students need more room for freedom
+ Students-grades 4-7 “need to have their spaces”
+ Develop “Flexible/Collaborative” Project Space (“garage” model)
+ Develop Educational Courtyards
+ Sustainable Design (Healthy Places for Learning)
SolarBC recently informed the project team that Solar for Schools funding for the installation of solar hot water systems on Samuel Brighouse Elementary School has been approved. The $20,000 worth of funding will be provided to the school district upon successful completion of the project.
On June 2nd, 2009, members of the Brighouse design team met with the School District, Principal and Vice-Principal of Brighouse Elementary, and 30-40 members of the community. Several display boards and two physical models illustrated the initial schematic design of the project and prompted one-on-one discussions. Overall, the initial design was well received. Comments were very positive and constructive, and they were written on a sheet in front of each presentation board for the design team to refer to as the design progresses. If you would like to offer your feedback on the initial design, please CLICK HERE to view the display boards.
