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Back of the Yards School

Chicago

location

Chicago, IL


project completion

August, 2013


size

215,000 sf


type

Education


awards

2014 Merit Award | Chicago Building Congress

2014 Best In Class | Brick Industry Association

BACK OF THE YARDS SCHOOL

Completed in August, 2013, the 215,000 sf Back of the Yards project responds to the programmatic prototype developed by John Ronan Architects for the Public Commission of Chicago. The program concept is organized around three thematic components: Body, Mind and Spirit and the site is also zoned according to these components. Thematic bars are created housing the athletics (body), the academy classrooms and teaching spaces (mind) and the library, arts and music (spirit). The thematic bars slide to create outdoor spaces on the site, programmed for specific activities that work in conjunction with the building’s entry courtyard, athletics fields, and reading room. The school hosts 1,200 students.

Back of the Yards is the first Chicago Public School that has been designed to incorporate a Chicago Public Library. The design of the Library took place during the construction of the project, and involved extensive cooperation between STL, the Public Building Commission and the Chicago Public Libraries.

team

Carolina Cartagena

Luis Collado

Jose Luis de la Fuente

Cole Gagnon

Beatriz Gonzalez

Janelle Moody

Jose Luis Perez-Griffo

Eduardo Ponce

Tracy Salvia

Zeltia Santiago

Alyssa Stowe