Sample Timeline of a Design-Build Project

Posted November 12th., 2023 by: Eugenia Forgang, Associate AIA

Designing Multi-Story Preschools

Posted March 7th., 2023 by: Jose Guevara, AIA

There are many variables that childcare providers have to consider when developing a new early education facility. From location, to student capacities, to the always important construction budget, no option is left unexplored. Multi-story early education facilities can be designed to resolve the many issues that owners face when building on compact lots in denser urban areas. 

The first aspect of developing a project that will have a significant effect on its success is finding the right site. When an owner is looking for property to develop in a highly populated area, large open tracts of land are difficult to find. The available area to build is limited which deters some providers as a smaller building footprint requires a reduction in student capacity or sacrificing access to outdoor play. These constraints can offer the types of challenges that encourage creative solutions from designers.

By design, multi-story facilities require less land than single story developments to serve the same number of children. This reduction in land cost can potentially offset the impact of incorporating appropriate building safety elements, like sprinkler systems and egress stairs.

Through the implementation of advanced technology, preschools are no longer limited to single story buildings. From a programming standpoint, we as Architects prioritize the placement of spaces for younger children on the ground level, whereas the older children can occupy the upper level(s). Multi-story early education buildings also offer the opportunity to provide access to outdoor play on the upper level. These outdoor areas can be stacked over play spaces on the ground level, which provide a chance to connect both areas with vertical

circulation, such as ramps and stairs. Ultimately early education providers should feel confident in their pursuit to develop projects in places outside of the norm to better serve a variety of communities. Building in dense, urban areas with limited land availability can be achieved effectively by designing multi-story childcare facilities. Partnering with a design professional that is able to blend the owner’s operational needs as well as life safety and creative solutions for outdoor access is the first step toward building a successful project.

School Security - Top of Mind and Out of Sight

Posted November 21st., 2022 by: Daniel Turner, Principal

School security and the safety of children, parents, teachers and administrators is top of mind for most of us these days. And rightly so. For early education environments specifically, it's important to take a balanced approach to security that prioritizes safety while also weighing the impacts of systems and strategies on the social and emotional well-being of children.

Let's start at the campus entry. When designing new schools, we focus on approachable and identifiable building entrances to ease pick-up and drop-off transitions. Highly visible, well-lit entrances should be easily monitored by school staff and administrators.

Access to your school should be controlled in some way. Whether you're using a managed access control system, unique key-fobs or even a keypad with dedicated codes for families, make sure you test the integrity of your system regularly and actively manage who has access to your school.

Bollards are traffic devices that restrict the flow of cars and provide protection for pedestrians and walk spaces. We like to deploy bollards in creative and sometimes hidden ways. An example of creative bollards include reinforced planters, shown here at the Endeavor Montessori School main entrance. We have also installed bollards integrated into the walls of classroom spaces that are adjacent to busy roads or parking lots - out of sight, but just as effective!

Some other security strategies to consider for your school facility include upgrading existing windows and doors with impact resistant glass or applying an anti-shatter security film. This is another example of a "hidden" security enhancement that's out-of-sight for children. You may also choose to outfit your classroom view windows with curtains or window treatments that may be drawn closed in an emergency and obscure the view into the room. Take care to avoid window treatments with hanging cords or controls which may become a choking hazard.

One final component to a healthy, out-of-sight security infrastructure is communication. Have protocols in place ahead of time to communicate in the event of an emergency. By being thoughtful in our planning process, we can build buildings which are more resilient to evolving security challenges. Our goal here is to create safer spaces and places that nurture learning, curiosity and discovery.

How do I begin to make sense of all the regulations when planning a new preschool?

Posted March 31st., 2022 by: Eugenia Forgang, Architect in Training

Posted on the wall in most establishments, one can see a maximum occupancy sign delegating the number of people who can be in a space at one time. The numbers on the signs are careful calculations done by architects and designers which have been verified through the local governing jurisdiction to ensure the safety of the people occupying the space. The amount of occupants that may be in a space at any given time is carefully thought out and designed depending on the use of the space and the type of building construction in order to satisfy life safety requirements. This applies to all types of buildings and spaces, not just the restaurants, bars, and venues where you most often see the signage posted. This article will briefly touch on the spatial requirements and occupancy loads in regards to early education centers in the state of Texas.

The International Building Code (IBC), which mandates the occupant loads required for permitting the construction of the building, defines the occupant load of a daycare area as one occupant per 35 net square feet. While the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), governed by the Department of Family and Protective Services which is the avenue early education facilities go through to obtain licensing, has a less restrictive occupant load of one occupant per 30 net square feet.

The example above exhibits how the same space will produce different numbers of occupants. Each number will be required in a separate step of the building process. You can see that the TAC occupancy load allows for more children compared to the IBC in the same square footage. This is where the help of a design professional can help you right size a classroom. When the occupancy load of a space is higher, it triggers the composition of the structure to have more constrictive design elements in order to ensure the safety of occupants. These elements include restrictions like ensuring that children under two and half have direct access to the outside, the size of the hallway and stairs, and proper fire suppression systems. Although this sounds like it may limit the playfulness of the space, architects and designers can utilize these restrictions to their advantage to create unique solutions. 

Once the general sizing needs of the project have been determined, there are other factors to contributing to the spatial planning. The TAC places a cap on the amount of children who are watched by a single caregiver and/or two or more caregivers. For example, a group of up to four children under the age of one-year old can be watched by one teacher, while a group of up to ten children under the age of one-year old can be watched by two teachers. The number of children that may be in a group increases as the children grow older and gain more autonomy. Therefore the spatial requirements of a classroom serving infants is not the same as a classroom serving preschool children.

Proper classroom design will accommodate the caregiver or facility’s goals. Not every preschool will have the capacity or desire to serve the maximum number of possible students allowed per state licensing, so therefore preschools can’t be planned with a one design fits all ideology. 

Knowing the goals and restrictions of a project is important for caregivers and facilities looking to build a new childcare center. However, the occupancy load and group sizing are just the foundation of what is expected when developing a space for children. These requirements vary from state to state, but engaging with experienced design professionals will actualize help the aspirations of your project.

A Healthy Built Environment in Early Education

Posted January 6th., 2022 by: Jose Guevara, AIA

Most people spend the majority of their lives inside a climate-controlled building. While an enclosed structure does a great job of protecting its inhabitants from the elements and facilitates access to amenities for performing daily tasks, it can also limit access to fresh air and natural daylight and can unintentionally increase exposure to chemical and biological contaminants from indoor sources. This is often referred to as Sick Building Syndrome.

Adults are not the only ones that experience these types of conditions day-to-day. Young children can spend up to 9 hours a day in preschools and day care facilities – that’s over 2,200 hours a year! And when you include after-school and summer programs across a time span of approximately 5 years the grand total can reach over 21,000 hours spent indoors. In those 5 years, young children are in a built environment for longer than the rest of their K-12 careers (over 16,000 hours).

Because children are developing so quickly during these early years, it is vital to provide them with the safest and most nourishing conditions possible. Being exposed to harmful physical environments can severely stunt a child’s development which can potentially affect the rest of their life.

It is for this reason that Daniel Scott Turner Design, as Early Education Architects, work hand-in-hand with facility directors and preschool providers, as well as our Engineering partners, to ensure the overall environmental health of their buildings and classrooms.

The most effective way to limit the exposure to indoor contaminants is by consciously selecting building materials and finishes that are no-VOC or low-VOC (Volatile Organic Compound). Flooring selections, for example carpet or vinyl tile, can potentially expose young children to dangerous chemicals and agents because of the amount of time they spend crawling or playing on the floor. These materials have been shown to off-gas chemicals and particulates into the air that can be harmful to children with respiratory health conditions. Some statistics show that one in ten children suffer from asthma with the percentage of children rising more rapidly in preschoolers. Eliminating irritants in the air is not only vital for health and safety but ultimately will keep children engaged in activities rather than in the nurse’s office.

A practical way to improve environmental conditions indoors is through operable windows. Windows not only offer access to natural daylight, which has been proven to enhance learning and engagement in school settings, they also provide an opportunity to allow for fresh air ventilation in classrooms. Opening a window to clear out stale air or noxious odors from a classroom is a better method than spraying another chemical in the air to mask the scent. It also serves as a learning tool to teach children about the weather or any other outdoor condition.

It is further recommended by ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers) to upgrade existing HVAC equipment or to calibrate new equipment to provide maximum fresh air intake and provide the highest level of air filtration.

A less common issue nowadays, but still highly important is lead and pesticide exposure. Being exposed to lead at a young age can more significantly impact a child’s life compared to the harm it can cause an adult. And exposure to pesticides at an early age can cause appreciable drops in IQ scores. It is critical to deploy appropriate testing and abatement strategies when building on a site suspect to contamination or when rehabbing an older building.

The final area of focus is the outdoor play spaces. While air quality is less a concern in outdoor settings, there are still potential exposures to contaminants in the play equipment used regularly. Again, any type of plastic equipment should be no-VOC or low-VOC, but also waterproofing treatments should be avoided on wood framed equipment. Further, the rubber pellets in artificial turf can sometimes be comprised of carcinogenic materials that can be harmful to children. Providers must remain attentive that students are not eating or playing with the pellets.

These elements are only a general overview of the various areas where children may be exposed to potentially harmful contaminants. However, by making a few relatively minor adjustments, a child’s experience in their preschool can be greatly enhanced.

Here’s a list of some of our go-to building materials that promote healthier Early Education Environments:

Forbo Flooring Systems - Marmoleum https://www.forbo.com/flooring/en-us/marmoleum/p41k10

Forbo Flooring Systems - Flotex https://www.forbo.com/flooring/en-us/products/flotex/cecpcj

Expanko Cork Flooring - https://www.expanko.com/products/prestige-cork-flooring/about-prestige/

Globus Cork Flooring - https://corkfloor.com/

Tectum Acoustic Ceilings - https://www.armstrongceilings.com/commercial/en/articles/tectum-part-of-armstrong-portfolio.html

Sherwin Williams Zero VOC Paints - https://www.sherwin-williams.com/architects-specifiers-designers/products/ecoselect-zero-voc-interior-latex

For further information and a more comprehensive list, check out Eco-Healthy Child Care Checklist.

https://cehn.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/EHCC-Checklist_2018_CEHN_Home-Printing.pdf

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