Messalonskee Middle School

Oakland, Maine
700 students	grades 6-8
100,000 sf	Completed 2003

This facility completes a campus master plan and consolidates the district’s grades 3-12 students on one central campus,. Its T-shaped plan is straightforward: with classrooms stacked  over  three virtually identical floors, it can accommodate three  multi-graded houses or one grade per floor. Each four-classroom group surrounds a glazed gathering space for non-classroom activities.

Counterposing the long, tall, and narrow metal-clad classroom wing, the “special spaces” wing is a broad, low slung brick-clad mooring, anchoring the sleek classroom wing to the site. Assembly areas for both students and the public (gymnasium, cafetorium) are located here just off the lobby, a soaring space filled with natural light. Stairs bridge across the volume, and carefully orchestrated forms, materials and colors make this space both welcoming and memorable.

Photos:  Brian Vanden Brink