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MARIA CARRILLO HIGH SCHOOL

Santa Rosa, CA | Complete

This award winning high school reflects an alternative to the traditional grid-based campus plan common to most high schools. Instead, it is conceived as a community of students, educators and other members of the community.

The heart of the school is a central linear circulation courtyard. This space links all major buildings including the library/media center, performing arts, administration and gymnasiums and functions much like the main street of a village. It provides a strong organization concept that clarifies circulation, and promotes social interaction.

Visitors to the school are instantly struck by the sense of community that this space creates. It provides numerous amenities including a covered lunch shelter, senior steps, and a variety of hard and soft areas to hang out, including seat walls, boulders, lawns and tables with benches. Instructional spaces are clustered around smaller, quieter secondary courtyards.