Francis Walsh Intermediate School
Location: Branford, Connecticut
Area: 169,000 Square Feet
Completion: 2019
DESCRIPTION
The Francis Walsh Intermediate School was originally constructed in 1970. The existing building was approximately 191,000 SF and located on 29 acres. In 2016, Antinozzi Associates was awarded the commission to provide design and construction administration services to completely renovate 25% of the existing structure and replace 75% of the facility with a new academic addition.
FEATURES
The alteration and extension of Walsh School was subdivided into a commons building (existing) and an academic building (new). The commons building, consisting of approximately 53,000 SF of renovated and repurposed existing space, contains the school’s administration offices, school nurse’s office, the school-based health suite, and shared athletic facilities including the natatorium and auditorium.
The academic building, comprised of the three-story 116,000 SF addition, consists of shared classrooms, art classrooms, a family consumer science classroom, and specialized instructional spaces for special education. The addition’s first floor incorporates the cafeteria, kitchen, and service space for the technology workshop and storage.
Intermediate level education is supported by a 21st century learning philosophy. Students of similar grades are divided into teams A and B. The classrooms associated with each team are “clustered”, facilitating supervision and student management. Each cluster consists of four standard classrooms (world language, English, social studies and math), a science room, and an open common instruction space.
Construction of the school was phased and remained in operation throughout the construction process.
