Early Childhood Education Center: Novi, Michigan

Meeting the needs of children aged three to five in an invigorating environment, the new Early Childhood Education Center is the result of interactive visioning with the community and district.

In order to provide an intimate, smaller school setting that fosters collaboration, the design team attended a national early childhood conference to learn more about how facilities can positively impact social and academic development.

The 39,000 -square-foot school includes 18 classrooms, a cafeteria, a multi-purpose room, and offices for Community Education and Enrollment Services. Also included is a dedicated space for children with special needs, a secure welcome center, and an adventure playground.

The innovative design includes porch entries that offer home-like first impressions as children arrive, allowing parents to walk children directly into school and interact with teachers. Learning studios offer open and stimulating environments that are accented with color and natural light.

Modern learning was integral to the design of this center. It is rich with technology and features flexible furniture. Keeping young learners in mind, designers utilized all available surfaces; the floors are used as often as the tables. Three collaboration areas within the main circulation spine denote class neighborhoods, a gross motor development center, and the dining commons. Display walls in these areas feature student work and announcements. The students and their work take center stage in this facility.

Knowing how important free play is to mental development, designers also incorporated multiple spaces for indoor play and a large outdoor playground to enhance teaching and learning. The playground features multiple play areas, including a popular, central synthetic turf hill. As an added bonus, the playground is open to the community for after-hours use.

Previously, the early childhood program was dispersed at multiple locations throughout the district at the Community Education Building, in a portable classroom at the middle school, at an elementary school, and at the high school. The parent-funded, tuition-based program had more applicants than their facilities could accommodate.

The new facility expanded the district’s program to accommodate an additional 50 to 100 students. In addition to the Early Childhood program, offices for Community Education and Enrollment Services were relocated to the new building. This building has allowed all of these functions to come togetherunder one roof and serve as the District’s first point of contact for new families.

The district and team had the advantage of history for this project, having worked on multiple projects together and utilizing a tried-and-true process. Past successful projects helped designers learn which products and processes the client preferred.

Close collaboration between the design team, construction manager, and program manager kept the project on budget and on schedule. An accelerated design schedule allowed for adequate bid times, allowing the district to take advantage of an optimal bidding climate. Schedule adjustments allowed for a reduction of the construction cost.

Thanks to a solid team effort, this unique learning facility is already making a big difference for the students and the community. It has been a welcoming front door to the district and is nearly at capacity.