sidwell friends school

Sidwell Friends SchoolStewart Middle School

A Study in Sustainable Design and Renewables Shane O. Batchelor, M.Arch

Florida International UniversityShane O. Batchelor

May not be reproduced without the expressed written consent of the authorCopyright, 2016

T.O.CTa

ble

of C

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ntsS idwell History 1-2

Site Plan 2

About the Building 3-4

Sustainable Strategies

Overview 5-6 Water Management 7-10 Green Roof + Energy 11 Eff ic iency Mater ia ls 12

Sidwell Images 13-14

Citations and Sources 15

Sidwell History

Sidwell Friends School is an educational facility with campuses located in Washington DC, and Bethesda, Maryland. Founder Thomas Watson Sidwell first started the ‘Friends’ Select School’ in 1883, based upon Quaker principles as an example of leadership in co-educational, urban day-school initiative. Initial enrollment at the Friends’ Select School was only 18 students. however enrollment rapidly grew over the next 20 years to over 200 students. During that time the school expanded its facilities significantly, adding one of the first

Gymnasiums in Washington, DC. The school had since established a fully matriculated K-12 curriculum with integrated Primary, Intermediate and High School Departments.2 The school grew over the years, evolving through a series of changes including the marriage of Founder Thomas Sidwell to Frances Halderman, whom he later made Co-Principal. The name of the school underwent its share of changes as well, going from ‘Friends’ Select’ to ‘Friends’ School,’ and an even more simplified Friends’. Later, the name Sidwells’ Friends School seemed to stick, as it emphasized the joint interest of the Co-Principals in the direction of the school. The school was a model for academic diversity and success. It placed significant emphasis on high-quality academic college preparation and college placement, and similarly co-education including active encouragement of girls to study study science, mathematics and industrial arts, in addition to participation in sports and physical education. The school also actively sought enrollment from Washington’s elite, including political and diplomatic communities, further ensuring a geographically and ethnically diverse student body.4

Frances Halderman-Sidwell died in 1934, after which Thomas Sidwell sought to secure the future of the school by incorporating as a non-profit institution led by a Board of Trustees. Two years later, in 1936, Thomas Sidwell died, however his due diligence had prepared the school to be led by the Board of Trustees with Headmaster Albert E. Rogers leading the venerabe institution.5

As was typical throughout Post War America in the late 1940s through 1950s, the school experienced booming growth. Their 5th-8th Grade Middle School was among the first in the nation in 1950. In 1955 the school sold its playing fields on the west side of Wisconsin Avenue which allowed them to purchase the

Early Classroom Photo at the Friends’ Select School

SIDWELL FRIENDS SCHOOLStewart Middle School

Year Built: 2006Location: Washington, DCArchitects: Kieran Timberlake AssociatesLandscape Architects: Andropogon Associates

Group B4Teri WatsonSharon FarinaShane Batchelor

Professor Claudia BuschFlorida International University

Frances Halderman-Sidwell, ca 1910-1920

Thomas Sidwell, ca 1915

adjacent historic structure known as the Highlands.6 Major purchases continued in the 1960s with the aquisition of the Longfellow School for Boys in Bethesda, MD, after which they transferred Primary grade students to the new location. This allowed for the demolition of the Sidwells’ Dutch Colonial making room for construction of a new modern High School Facility.6

Major construction and renovation projects lessened over the years; in 1981 the Kogod Center

for the Arts was constructed inpreparation for the school’s centennial, in 1997 the Upper School underwent major remodeling and the new Earl G. Harrison Jr. Upper School came to fruition in the fall of that year.7 2004 saw a new green renovation project led by Kieran Timberlake Associates . Highlights of the project include a new geothermal heatpump system, the construction of a new Middle School Building in 2006, in cluding renovation and additions to the shell of the 1950s Middle School. It was the first LEED Platinum K-12 School building in the country owing to a slew of innovative green building technologies.

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Sidwell Friends School is an educational facility with campuses located in Washington DC, and Bethesda, Maryland. Founder Thomas Watson Sidwell first started the ‘Friends’ Select School’ in 1883, based upon Quaker principles as an example of leadership in co-educational, urban day-school initiative. Initial enrollment at the Friends’ Select School was only 18 students. however enrollment rapidly grew over the next 20 years to over 200 students. During that time the school expanded its facilities significantly, adding one of the first

Gymnasiums in Washington, DC. The school had since established a fully matriculated K-12 curriculum with integrated Primary, Intermediate and High School Departments.2 The school grew over the years, evolving through a series of changes including the marriage of Founder Thomas Sidwell to Frances Halderman, whom he later made Co-Principal. The name of the school underwent its share of changes as well, going from ‘Friends’ Select’ to ‘Friends’ School,’ and an even more simplified Friends’. Later, the name Sidwells’ Friends School seemed to stick, as it emphasized the joint interest of the Co-Principals in the direction of the school. The school was a model for academic diversity and success. It placed significant emphasis on high-quality academic college preparation and college placement, and similarly co-education including active encouragement of girls to study study science, mathematics and industrial arts, in addition to participation in sports and physical education. The school also actively sought enrollment from Washington’s elite, including political and diplomatic communities, further ensuring a geographically and ethnically diverse student body.4

Frances Halderman-Sidwell died in 1934, after which Thomas Sidwell sought to secure the future of the school by incorporating as a non-profit institution led by a Board of Trustees. Two years later, in 1936, Thomas Sidwell died, however his due diligence had prepared the school to be led by the Board of Trustees with Headmaster Albert E. Rogers leading the venerabe institution.5

As was typical throughout Post War America in the late 1940s through 1950s, the school experienced booming growth. Their 5th-8th Grade Middle School was among the first in the nation in 1950. In 1955 the school sold its playing fields on the west side of Wisconsin Avenue which allowed them to purchase the adjacent historic structure known as the Highlands.6 Major purchases continued in the 1960s with the aquisition of the Longfellow School for Boys in Bethesda, MD, after which they transferred Primary grade students to the new location. This allowed for the demolition of the Sidwells’ Dutch Colonial making room for construction of a new modern High School Facility.6

Major construction and renovation projects lessened over the years; in 1981 the Kogod Center

for the Arts was constructed inpreparation for the school’s centennial, in 1997 the Upper School underwent major remodeling and the new Earl G. Harrison Jr. Upper School came to fruition in the fall of that year.7 2004 saw a new green renovation project led by Kieran Timberlake Associates . Highlights of the project include a new geothermal heatpump system, the construction of a new Middle School Building in 2006, in cluding renovation and additions to the shell of the 1950s Middle School. It was the first LEED Platinum K-12 School building in the country owing to a slew of innovative green building technologies.

Renovated Middle School

The Renovatoin of the Sidwell Friends’ School is part of a Master Plan begun in 2001 by Kieran Timberlake Associates. The plan calls for a phased transformation of several buildings between its Washington, DC and Bethesda, MD campuses. The Middle School, constructed in 1950 was among the buildings slated for an upgrade. The design began with an analysis of the site which found an underutilized landscape and inefficient energy and ecological performance. The opportunity was henceforth born to unite forward thinking values of the school with a new facility built on sustainable environmental design. The result was a “true teaching landscape-not only inside its classrooms but also on site-with rooftop gardens and a constructed wetland in the school’s quadrangle as a metaphor for the school’s committment to sustainability.”

Renovated Meeting Center

Site Plan, Sidwell Friends’ School2

Building Sq Ft: 72,500Renovation Sq Ft: 33,500Addition Sq Ft: 39,000

Program (Renovation + Addition): Classrooms - Science, Music, Art, Library, Constructed Wetland, Rooftop Gardens

The construction saw the renovation of the existing middle school along with an L-shaped addition that merges with the old school building to form a U-shaped building cradling a sloping courtyard. The idea was to create one contiguous green building, utilizing sustainable materials that re-interpreted the architecture to be part of the landscape. The first act of sustainability was to preserve the existing building rather than demolishing the structure. “The new school now performs an environmental function but is also part of the life of the campus-all the way up to the green roofs.” 9

(Left) Sustainably clad facade using reclaimed Western Red Cedar(Bottom) Wetland featuring terraced filtration and Biology Pond

About The Building

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Old Building

New Addition

Constructed Wetland

Photovoltaic Panels

Solar Venting Stacks

Green Roof

Sustainable Material

Natural Lighting

About The Building

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KEY SUSTAINABE STRATEGIES

Managing Water Resources

Courtyard Wetland with closed loop cycle for water reuse. Stormwater and Wastewater Reclaimation

Energy Efficiency Active and passive energy strategies, including photovoltaic panels and venting stacks

Green Roof Rooftop vegetable garden and water filtration

Sustainable Materials Reclaimed materials including Western Red Cedar and Douglas Fir

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CA BSolar Ventilation Stacks Rooftop Garden Photovoltaic Array Roof Plan

Sustainable Strategies: Overview

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Existing Middle School

New Addition

Trickle Filter

Wetland Wastewater Treatment

Rain Garden

Stormwater Biology Pond

Outdoor Classrom

Butterfly Meadow

Woodland Screen

Playground

COMPONENTS OF A SUSTAINABLE SITE

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Wastewater Management System

Stormwater Management System

Rainwater Cistern

Basement Tanks and Filters

Settling Tank

Solar Panels

Green Roof

Rooftop Vegetable Garden

Roof LeadersAeration Course

Trickle Filtration

Biology Pond

Treatment Wetlands

Overflow Rain Garden

Waste Water/Storm Water Management Systems

Sustainable Strategies: Water Management

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Water From Restrooms and Lavatories

Underground Storage Tank

Flow Splitter

Terraced Wetland Filtration

Exit Wetland

Trickling Filter with Interactive Display

Exit Trickling Filter

Sand Filter

Building Storage and Re-distribution

Waste Water Management System Detail


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Rooftop Gardens planted and maintained by students. In the background, solar chimneys provide natural ventilation and light to lower levels.

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Wetland TerracesWastewater doesn’t flow over the terraces, but rather seeps into the pebble beds below as it percolates towards the Biology Pond. This reduces the possibility of any wayward smells from the wastewater recycling process.

Rain Garden

Biology PondSection Through Site Showing Water Filtration Mechanisms


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Renders showing stormwater management system in action.

Students have an opportunity to see and learn how the building’s filtration system works, from the rain garden, to the diversion channels, to the wetland filtration terraces

Diversion channels that visualize the filtration systems

Biology Pond featured marine and bacterial life that clean and purify wastewater produced by the building

Rain Garden catches overflow from Biology Pond as well as stormwater for recycling


Water Management Systems 10

The building utilizes active and passive energy strategies including a photovoltaic array adorning the roof of the old school. The Solar chimneys on the new addition provide natural ventilation as the sun heats up the air within the glass chimney tops creating a convection current that pulls fresh air in through open open windows on the north face of the building. Horizontal light shelves on the south facade and vertical shading on the east and west screen out harmful sun rays, while welcoming natural light.The green roof features a vegetable garden and acts as an integral part of the filtration system for stormwater runoff.10

(Top) Students tend to the rooftop vegetation garden while learning how the Solar chimneys funnel fresh air through the building

(Middle) The green roof is a beautiful addition to the building with integral functionality. It provides insulation for the building’s interior, and filters stormwater for the building’s water management system

(Bottom) A photovoltaic array produces up to 5 percent of the building’s energy needs

Sustainable Strategies: Green Roof + Energy Efficiency

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Almost all materials used in the building construction and renovation is reclaimed or recycled.10

Cladding from 100 year-old Western Red CedarLobby and deck walkways from green lumber pilings taken from the Baltimore HarborExtensive use of linoleum, cork and reclaimed stone

OTHER SUSTAINABLE FEATURES10

Douglas Fir from old high school bleachers used for window framingScreening on the building’s West End provided by natural vinesCabinets from sustainable BambooSunlight sensing adjustable lightingAngled reflectors in hallways that bounce light into classrooms without increasing temperatureOccupancy sensors in classrooms and labsCO2 sensing Ventilation system that adjusts/freshens air based on occupancy load

Sustainable Strategies: Materials

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Sidwell Images

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Sidwell Images

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Sidwell Citations and Sources

In Text Citations

Sidwell Friends School ‘About SFS’http://www.sidwell.edu/about_sfs/index.aspx

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Sidwell Friends School ‘History’http://www.sidwell.edu/about_sfs/history/index.aspx

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Kieran Timberlake ‘Stewart Middle School’http://www.kierantimberlake.com/pages/view/230

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New Sidwell Middle School a Living Component to D.C Campushttp://info.aia.org/aiaarchitect/thisweek06/1027/1027d_pw_sidwell.cfm

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Works Cited

"About SFS." Sidwell Friends School:. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Boniface, Russel. "AIArchitect This Week | Project Watch: New Sidwell Middle School a Living Component to D.C. Campus." AIArchitect This Week | Project Watch: New Sidwell Middle School a Living Component to D.C. Campus. American Institute of Architects, 27 Oct. 2006. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Drake, Erin, Matthew Goyak, and Matthew Von Soest. Ball State University, n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015

"Green Building." Sidwell Friends School: Middle School » Middle School Building. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

"History." Sidwell Friends School: About SFS ». N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

"Pruned: The Wetland Machine of Sidwell." Pruned: The Wetland Machine of Sidwell. N.p., 4 June 2009. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

"Sidwell Friends Middle School, Washington, DC." Sidwell Friends Middle School, Washington, DC. Chicago Architecture Foundation, n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

"Stewart Middle School | Sidwell Friends School | KieranTimberlake." Stewart Middle School | Sidwell Friends School | KieranTimberlake. Kieran Timberlake Associates, n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Wessler, Sarah. "AD Interviews: Kieran Timberlake." ArchDaily. Arch Daily, 18 Aug. 2009. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

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