Lately, we’ve published a fair number of articles about schools in the area being designed or having additions designed with new ideas in mind.

Seneca Valley’s Ehrman Crest is like stepping into a new world. It seems everything from basement to proverbial belfry has some sort of purpose in stimulating students’ minds, piquing curiosity and fostering more excitement about school.

Just yesterday, Eagle staff reported on a $35 million dollar renovation project in the works at Knoch, including not just updates for the school campus as a whole, but also a spacious new cafe commons with digital screens. It also features “learning stairs” — seven tiered levels where students can be seated, as a teacher on the floor level gives instruction on one of the large screens.

Principal architect Cassandra Renninger stated that DRAW Collective, the architectural firm hired for the project, wants to make sure the bright, glass-enclosed space is inviting for students and a place of respite.

It seems that school administrations are finally realizing that student comfort can have a huge affect on their success. The age of windowless white block and patchwork carpet squares is slowly on its way out the door.

Children and teenagers are not superhuman. Acknowledging that they need a place specifically designated to shutting off for a few minutes a day is a big step in the right direction towards modernizing the way a school operates.

In the wake of a pandemic that’s slowly showing signs of waning, we’re finding that remote learning has thrown many students into varying stages of success. Some students are catching up to their peers, and others are simply trying to readjust to being on the school campus again instead of in their living rooms.

While some smaller schools may find that renovations simply aren’t in the cards at present, the models and ideas are out there. There’s clearly been a shift in thinking that we commend.

We can’t wait to see the finished product, and how other schools may blaze new trails in the coming years.

– CM