DMR’s extensive K-12 roster includes new, redesigned and repurposed educational spaces in four districts in three counties, all set to open for the new school year.
The projects located in Hudson, Passaic and Hunterdon counties include:
Frank J. Gargiulo Campus, Secaucus
Classes will begin in September at the Frank J. Gargiulo Campus in Secaucus, the new, 340,000 square foot school completed on behalf of the Hudson County Schools of Technology. DMR served as the architect of record on the project which replaces the undersized and aging space the school previously occupied in North Bergen. The advanced facility will provide progressive educational spaces in support of the career-prep curriculum of the school’s four academies: Culinary Arts, Design & Fabrication, Applied & Environmental Science, and Visual/Tech & Performing Arts.
The college-level facilities will also include geo-thermal heating and cooling, solar panels, wind-generated turbines and a green roof. The project will be submitted for LEED Gold certification.
North Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School District & Hunterdon County Vocational School District, Allendale and Glen Gardner
As architect of record to the North Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School District, which includes North Hunterdon High School in Allendale and Voorhees High School in Glen Gardner, DMR completed several projects which will provide new spaces for students, including a new team room and a new gymnasium at North Hunterdon High School.
Another project, completed on behalf of the Hunterdon County Vocational School District but housed within Voorhees High School, will provide a modernized computer science lab.
The space will accommodate a new program offered by the Computer Science and Applied Engineering Academy of the Vocational School District, which offers college credits through Fairleigh Dickinson University. To accommodate this program, DMR transformed a former office into a flexible learning environment which also includes a makerspace, a collaborative work area adjacent to the main classroom which is dedicated to hands-on educational opportunities. The makerspace will support the curriculum of the program which focuses on modern computing and robotics, and requires student to build a small, functioning robot.
“New Jersey’s school systems have always been one of the State’s top selling points,” Lloyd Rosenberg, AIA, President and CEO, said. “When municipalities and counties invest in their education facilities, they are contributing to New Jersey’s future growth.”
Passaic Public School System, Passaic
In response to a district-wide grade restructuring, DMR-designed spaces are also set to open within the Passaic Public School District.
At Public School #20, which previously housed only grades K-5, will also welcome students in grades 6-8 in September. In response to the expanded needs required by a middle school educational program, DMR redesigned an existing utilities storage room to accommodate a music classroom, while also redesigning and expanding the gymnasium space.
DMR also renovated classrooms at Holy Rosary School to provide additional educational space while the district completes new construction projects. The space will reopen in September as an annex to Public School #8.
“In modernizing so many schools, we are seeing improvements extend far beyond physical appearance and are instead really improving the educational experience of the students,” Lloyd Rosenberg continued, “We are often seeing this through prioritized subjects and enhanced spaces that may have previously been overlooked due to budget constraints, such as music and physical education.”
