Fairchild Wheeler Interdistrict Magnet High School Campus
Bridgeport, CT – The Association for Learning Environments (A4LE) has named JCJ Architecture and the Fairchild Wheeler Interdistrict Magnet High School Campus (FWIMC) as the recipient of the 2016 James D. MacConnell Award.
FWIMC, located in Bridgeport, brings together 1,500 students from Bridgeport Public Schools and eight surrounding districts into three 500-student small learning communities focused around a rigorous and interactive STEM curriculum. The school recently graduated 98.5% of its first class of students — far surpassing rates of graduation seen in major urban centers such as Bridgeport.
Rob Pillar, AIA, ALEP, A4LE’s Northeast Regional chairman, commented, “All of this year’s entries were exceptional. The Fairchild Wheeler project stood out because of the team’s tenacity to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles in order to achieve its vision. The project epitomizes how a school can inspire a community toward a common goal.”
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A4LE (formerly CEFPI) is an international professional organization whose primary purpose is improving the places where children learn, this prestigious award recognizes a comprehensive planning process that results in educational facilities that enhance the educational program, meet multiple goals and hold purpose and distinction within a community.
“Every part of the school environment was designed to empower students to take responsibility for their own learning and promote interdisciplinary connections,” said Jim LaPosta, FAIA, Principal-in-Charge from JCJ Architecture. “The Fairchild Wheeler project demonstrated to the A4LE jurors an innovative process, tenacious problem solving as well as a project that supports learning, balances multiple needs and is adaptable. Seeing students like Cody Scanlan as well as teachers, administrators and industry partners utilizing the school to create life-changing experiences has been incredibly gratifying. This is why we do what we do.”
The school’s innovative design and program has become one of a handful of projects to become a “MacConnell project” and the first project in New England to be accorded this honor. Three programs—Information Technology and Software Engineering, Biotechnology Research and Zoological Sciences, Aerospace/Hydrospace Engineering and Physical Sciences—emphasize project based learning and direct partnerships with educational and industry experts.
