St. Anthony Catholic Elementary School - Madison, Mississippi
By: Jennifer Walker-Journey
The affluent city of Madison near Jackson, Mississippi, has much to be proud of. In 2007, it was selected by Family Circle magazine as one of the nation's "10 Best Towns for Families." It didn't take long for Madison to become one of the fastest-growing communities in the state.
Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church had access to an excellent preschool program, and students who entered high school were eager to join the ranks of St. Joseph Catholic School. But there was not a Catholic elementary school in Madison, and church leadership set out to fill that void.
With the concept for St. Anthony Catholic Elementary School in place, church leadership turned to a trusted source to design the building, JH&H Architects/Planners/Interiors PA, located in neighboring Jackson, Mississippi. The firm had designed the church in previous years and has vast experience designing educational projects.
The church wanted its new school to serve students from K-4 through sixth grade and "provide an exciting and nurturing environment to combine academic excellence with Catholic Christian education," said Carl Franco, a principal with JH&H.
One of the challenges Franco faced was designing the school so that it complemented the community in which it would be built.
"This new Catholic school is constructed in one of the most affluent counties in the South. The public education system and educational facilities are some of the best in the South; therefore, this private Christian school had to meet compatible standards in the quality of the facility design within a more limited budget," Franco said.
Another challenge was that the construction schedule would be tight. The church wanted the school open in time for the 2009-10 school year, allowing just 10 months to complete the project, which would normally take a year or more.
"The solution to overcome both the challenge of budget and schedule was the selection of a Partnering Delivery System, in which the architect and contractor, Malouf Construction, were both brought on board at the beginning of the planning and design phases," Franco said. "This partnering approach permitted a team approach of owner, architect, and contractor to work together to achieve the common goals within a tight schedule."
With support from both the contractor and owner, Franco designed a building to accommodate 400 students in classrooms with the core spaces, such as the administration suite, media center, cafeteria, and gym, designed to hold 500 to 600 students. However, the building would allow for more classrooms to be added on to the classroom wings as enrollment grew.
The initial building spanned 47,000 square feet and included 16 classrooms, a computer/technology lab, an art classroom, a music classroom, administrative suite, media center, kitchen/cafeteria, multipurpose gym/assembly area, chapel, and support space, including bathrooms, storage, and mechanical rooms. With the Partnering Delivery System in place, construction began on time, moved forward smoothly, and the building was completed in time.
As students arrive at St. Anthony, they enter under a covered portico and walk into a large atrium with high ceilings and beautiful stained concrete floors. The facing wall features the school's crest and a Bible verse. The walls and ceiling of the atrium are also reinforced with concrete, making it a safe harbor for students in the event of inclement weather. Classroom wings feature 16 state-of-the-art classrooms, as well as a science lab, a computer lab equipped with Dell computers, a music room with sloped ceilings and acoustic walls for sound enhancement, a kitchen and cafeteria area with walls designed to absorb sound for noise reduction, a gym/ assembly area with a stage area, and a media center with an outdoor discovery room and indoor tiered reading room. Also outdoors is a fenced-in playground with earth tone equipment and rubber surfacing. It also has outdoor speakers, as well as an outdoor walking path and fitness area. A 110-space parking area sits adjacent to the school building.
Teachers were also consulted about the classroom design, which resulted in the addition of interactive teaching boards, sinks, large work areas, and plenty of natural light in each of the classrooms.
A chapel is located in the center of the school with a full wall-sized stained glass window for small class meditation, devotion, and mass. It also complements the chapel at St. Francis.
"We wanted the homey feel of our church in our school," said principal Angela Brunini. "It's just beautiful with the same stained glass windows and woodwork and handmade pews."
Franco designed the interior with a warm and nurturing scheme, and the exterior was designed to reflect the school's location in a residential community with a standing seam metal roofing and architectural split-face concrete masonry units at the base and brick on the low walls. Metal panels are placed on the high walls. Interior and exterior materials were selected based on their low maintenance, high quality, and longevity.
JH&H Architects/Planners/Interiors, P.A., has produced more than 1,500 projects in Mississippi and throughout the Southeast, www.jhharchitects.com.
