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M-DCPS TO HOLD GROUNDBREAKING FOR MIAMI – Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) will break ground for Highland Oaks Middle School West on Friday, Sept. 23, at 10 a.m. The ceremony will take place at 850 Ives Dairy Road, Miami. “The school is a welcome addition to northeast Miami-Dade County,” said Dr. Martin Karp, School Board member representing District 3. “It will provide a unique and stimulating learning environment that will benefit both students and the community.” Highland Oaks Middle School West represents a new vision for M-DCPS through the adaptive re-use of valuable existing real estate. This new 625-student school will provide much-needed student seats within the walls of an existing commercial center. This school model provides an opportunity for revitalizing existing neighborhoods while helping to control land acquisition cost and urban sprawl. This facility will have all of the typical programmatic elements found in Miami-Dade’s public schools. School designers have taken special care in crafting an educational environment within an existing space by reinforcing the idea of the existing mall. A large central “spine” provides the main circulation area, serving as the central nerve of student life. Unique spaces flank this main spine, providing a constant reminder to students of the educational richness of this facility. A flexible assembly space within the spine provides the school with an ability to adapt for different types of performances and uses. This hi-tech environment will be a modern facility with the latest in technology capable of energizing a sense of excitement and pride, as well as reinforcing the students’ desire to learn. This 60,000 sq.ft. facility will open in the first quarter of 2006. It is the result of a design concept developed by M-DCPS design staff in partnership with the architectural firms of BRPH and Brown & Brown. ### 05-LJG/066/JJS |
