LAUSD High School #1 is a new learning complex for the Los Angeles Unified School District located in one of the most challenging urban areas of the city.  Conceived as a 21st century prototype for the district, the project houses 2200 students in a 310,000 square foot facility.  The location of the school in a commercial and light industrial zone (a result of a severe shortage of buildable sites) drove the conceptual direction of the project. The project was conceived as on academic 'oasis' within the hard-edged urbanity of the area.

The project is a braced frame steel structure with cement stucco, porcelain panels, corrugated siding- extensive glazing, and metal screen mesh.  The exterior of the facility is a tough shell, with layers of skins that envelope the interior campus to create a protective environment.  The large classroom building acts as a wall that separates the campus visually and acoustically from Washington Boulevard and the freeway. This interior campus area is comprised of lower scaled elements loosely arranged around a landscaped circulation arroyo that carves through the campus and organizes the various levels and informal circulation paths.  At key entry points into the campus, the shell cracks open to offer glimpses into the interior, and the landscaped arroyo spills out to welcome the students.

*While Design Principal with HMC Architects