Lakeridge Middle School

• Project highlights: Lakeridge Middle School

• Architecture firm:  Mahlum Architects
• Owner:  Lake Oswego School District
• Location:  Lake Oswego, Ore.
• Category:  General
• Project site: Previously developed
• Building program type(s):  Education - K-12 school

With a design based on the principles of biophilia, the new Lakeridge Middle School in Lake Oswego, Oregon, stands ready to support its middle school learners. As the first of two area middle schools to be rebuilt, this project replaced two deteriorating buildings to create a single, resilient school that will support students and serve the community for the next century. 

When poor soil conditions had rendered the previous schools, which dated to the 1950s and 1960s, unsalvageable, the Lake Oswego community, encouraged by local activists, envisioned a new approach to learning. For the new middle schools, the community requested a design solution with seismic resiliency that would support the economy and ecology through local and sustainable materials, and students with day-lit, flexible spaces. 

Through the design process for Lakeridge Middle School, the community also developed a district-wide educational specification. Working closely with several teams and the broader community, the design team identified three overarching goals that would help create a learner-centric environment that promotes equity and sustainability.

To that end, the classrooms are wrapped around an exterior courtyard and have been reimagined as a series of tech-centric, paired learning studios. The classrooms include multiple teaching walls and flexible furniture and are connected to a makerspace via sliding-glass doors. The cafeteria/commons was designed for students who thrive in active areas and for those who need calm. In addition, every person in the school has access to private, single-occupant restrooms. When compared to a baseline middle school, Lakeridge represents a 71% reduction in energy use and is registered with the Energy Trust of Oregon’s Path to Net Zero program. 

Organized as a loop, the school eliminates dead ends while also diversifying circulation pathways and reducing travel distances. The design team’s research into the site’s history and geology and the area’s trees informed the palette of natural materials and colors found in the school’s wood ceilings, whole-tree columns, and green accent colors. The biophilic elements, which have been proven to boost learning outcomes, merge with the school’s palette and performance to constantly reinforce connections to nature. 

The team leveraged passive design for optimal systems function. The highly insulated building envelope and hybrid-passive cooling features helped lower construction and maintenance costs while also encouraging active engagement with the building, such as opening windows and activating rooftop vents to cool the classrooms and cafeteria. The actions that allow the school to function smoothly are the same one that draw in daylight and provide literal breaths of fresh air.