Effingham High School

Effingham, Illinois

Firm

FGM Architects Inc.

Client

Effingham Community School District 40

Area

265,000 sq.ft.

Total Cost

$11,060,695

Completion Date

08/1998

The Effingham School District set a number of goals for the design and planning of its new high school: the school must provide an educational environment that will adapt technically and spatially to the learning needs of tomorrow’s students: the school must provide for concurrent student events. The ability to schedule sports events, fine-arts events, academic events and community events on the same night is necessary; the school must provide good value in initial and operational costs to the community. Materials and building systems must provide for the long-term economy of maintenance and appearance; the educational environment must be recognized as an interactive, interrelated learning environment. The spaces should accommodate the educational process but also provide a friendly, stimulating place for the students. Areas for informal interaction and communication necessary for students’ social development and personal growth must be considered.
To address these issues, the board, administration and educators worked with the design team to develop a school facility comprised of four major components.
The first component is the commons/food service/performance-arts area. Grouped with administration and music, it becomes a central hub of daily student life. The second component is the academic area. The classrooms, grouped by department and relative teaching systems, are located centrally in the building to reduce student travel time and provide for future expansion.
The third component is the media center. Centrally located, it is accessible to academic areas. With its own entrance, it becomes accessible to the community.
The fourth component, the physical-education wing, groups the sports areas to accommodate daytime and nighttime student use.

Photographer: ©Sam Fentress