Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C., has been certified LEED Platinum, the highest distinction, by the U.S. Green Building Council. Designed Perkins Eastman in association with Moody•Nolan, the 280,000-sf school achieved 91 points, out of 100 base points possible for LEED, making it the highest-scoring school in the world certified under USGBC’s LEED for Schools-New Construction system. The new school building welcomed its first students in 2013.
Located blocks from the U.S. Capitol, the high school provides a high-performance 21st-century learning environment designed to catalyze the renewal of one of our most historic schools. The nation’s first public high school for African Americans, Dunbar was originally founded in 1870 and relocated to the current site in 1917. Demolished in the 1970s, the 1917 building was a particular point of civic pride in the community, representing the values and dreams of the students, their families, and the larger community, and their aspirations for notable achievement.
The school campus raises the bar for sustainable, high-performance school design in the District and for the students’ environmental stewardship. Its more prominent sustainable design attributes include:
- 482 kW photovoltaic array, provided through Washington, D.C.’s first power purchase agreement, that generates enough energy on a sunny summer day to power all classroom lights for eight hours
- Washington, D.C.’s largest ground-source heat pump system below Dunbar’s athletic field, with wells extending 460 feet deep
- The reopening of O Street as a sustainable model that features 6,152 sf of rain gardens able to handle a 1.2-inch storm event
- Pervasive natural light resulting from proper orientation and shading of the building
- Two 20,000-gallon cisterns and low-flow fixtures help save over 1,400,000 gallons of potable water/year
- Enhanced acoustics that help create a high-performance learning environment.
“Dunbar’s LEED Platinum achievement is a testament to the power of vision and dedication to create a truly sustainable high-performance learning environment,” says Sean O’Donnell AIA, LEED AP, Principal-in-Charge of the project and the leader of Perkins Eastman’s K-12 practice area. “In the same year that the school has been certified Platinum, it has also posted the highest standardized test score gains in the entire city—this after only one year in the building. I believe that innovative design has created a synergy with the school’s educational transformation initiatives that is resulting in more successful educational outcomes for the students.”
The school was designed in close collaboration with the Department of General Services, the District of Columbia Public Schools, the school and its alumni, the community, and the design and construction team, which was a joint venture between Perkins Eastman, Setty Associates International, and SK&A Structural Engineers in association with Moody•Nolan. The team also includes Smoot/Gilbane Construction.
Related Stories
K-12 Schools | Jun 5, 2023
How to achieve cost-effective kindergarten classrooms
Educational architect Robin Randall shares realistic advice about the challenges of adding developmentally appropriate, play-based kindergarten classrooms while respecting budget limitations.
K-12 Schools | May 30, 2023
K-12 school sector trends for 2023
Budgeting and political pressures aside, the K-12 school building sector continues to evolve. Security remains a primary objective, as does offering students more varied career options.
K-12 Schools | May 25, 2023
From net zero to net positive in K-12 schools
Perkins Eastman’s pursuit of healthy, net positive schools goes beyond environmental health; it targets all who work, teach, and learn inside them.
K-12 Schools | May 22, 2023
The revival of single-building K-12 schools
Schools that combine grades PK through 12 are suddenly not so uncommon. Education sector experts explain why.
K-12 Schools | May 17, 2023
Designing K-12 schools for students and safety
While bullying, mental health, and other acts of violence are all too common in schools today, designers have shown that smart and subtle preventive steps can make a big difference. Clark Nexsen’s Becky Brady shares how prevention and taking action at the design level can create safe and engaging learning environments.
K-12 Schools | May 12, 2023
In Virginia, a new high school building helps reimagine the experience for 1,600 students
In Virginia, the City of Alexandria recently celebrated the topping out of a new building for Alexandria City High School. When complete in 2025, the high-performance structure will accommodate 1,600 students.
Sustainability | Apr 20, 2023
13 trends, technologies, and strategies to expect in 2023
Biophilic design, microgrids, and decarbonization—these are three of the trends, technologies, and strategies IMEG’s market and service leaders believe are poised to have a growing impact on the built environment.
K-12 Schools | Apr 18, 2023
ASHRAE offers indoor air quality guide for schools
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has released a guide for educators, administrators, and school districts on indoor air quality. The guide can be used as a tool to discuss options to improve indoor air quality based on existing HVAC equipment, regional objectives, and available funding.
K-12 Schools | Apr 13, 2023
Creating a sense of place with multipurpose K-12 school buildings
Multipurpose buildings serve multiple program and functional requirements. The issue with many of these spaces is that they tend not to do any one thing well.
Market Data | Apr 11, 2023
Construction crane count reaches all-time high in Q1 2023
Toronto, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Denver top the list of U.S/Canadian cities with the greatest number of fixed cranes on construction sites, according to Rider Levett Bucknall's RLB Crane Index for North America for Q1 2023.
