PS 7

Queens, NY

Situated on a 2-acre site in a densely built-up urban area comprised of buildings of varied scale and use, the 1,200-student PS7 campus establishes a noble civic presence for the school that also optimizes the small site. For example, in addition to the students’ recreation needs, the school’s large playground creates a new urban place in front of the school where the community can gather.

Inside the school, conceptual “neighborhoods” of classrooms distinctly define each grade level, helping to reduce the scale of the school for the students and staff. Public spaces are designed as galleries for student work, and they provide seating areas for small groups to gather, ensuring that every space in the building supports learning. Likewise, the classrooms are designed to accommodate ever-changing technologies and seating configurations. The building is zoned to foster active community use of the auditorium, gym and cafeterias without disruption to the academic program.

Conceived as a prototypical “kit-of-parts” comprised of five programmatic blocks, PS7 illustrates the use of these blocks to address the varied scale of the adjacent context. This kit-of-parts was successfully implemented on three other equally complicated urban sites.