Hixson Middle School
This approximately 150,000 square foot school was built to serve 6th through 8th grades in a growing area of Chattanooga. To that end the building was designed to accommodate 800 students with expansion capability to serve up to 1200. The Media Center, Dining Hall, and Gymnasium are designed to hold the final student population while the classroom wings are designed to be extended when the time comes. Located in a farm field adjacent to the existing high school we were able to preserve the existing tree breaks and align with the existing high school through careful site planning.
The building is arranged around a 2-story north-south “Passage” that connects classroom wings to the East with Media Center, Dining, and Gymnasium on the West and extends visually to the high school beyond. The building features deeply textured brick in two colors and overlapping roof planes to be visually interesting both from the road and when the viewer is up close.
The classrooms wings are oriented to get the best available natural light through generously sized windows. The roof is a highly reflective combination of membrane and metal that reduces solar heat gain to the interior while generous overhangs shade the building walls to further reduce heat gain. The mechanical system is a highly efficient geothermal system that uses the naturally stable temperature of the earth to cool the building. Clerestory windows in the Media Center and Dining Hall provide generous amounts of natural light in these large spaces.
