Across the Nation: New school to replace old one

BACLIFF - Construction has begun on maritime-themed K.E. Little Elementary School, part of the Dickinson Independent School District. The new 92,000-square-foot school will replace an older school with the same name on the same site, at a cost of $7.5 million.

The original campus will continue to operate while the new one is being built. After the student body and staff move into the new school, with no interruption to classes, parts of the original building will be demolished.

A lighthouse design motif was chosen for the school to reflect the bay area location. The design features a pyramidal, frosted dome skylight at the school entrance that is a beacon to the outside at night.

Serving about 750 students on a 20-acre campus, the 33 classrooms of the new school will be arranged in grade pods with a central commons area for each pod. The library, technology center and computer lab will be located in the center where the grade pods meet.

Other amenities to be used by all the grade pods include a science lab, an art lab, a life-skills center, a music room, special classrooms for reading and detention, a cafetorium and a gymnasium with exterior covered play area.

Architect for the project, scheduled for completion in June 2001, is Bay Architects; Falcon Group Construction is in charge of construction.