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Community Helping Design the Reimagined Kiva Campus
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (May 1, 2020) – On October 1, 2019, the Scottsdale Unified School District Governing Board voted unanimously to name Kiva Elementary School, 6911 E. McDonald Drive, Paradise Valley, the sixth school to be renovated as part of a 2016 voter-approved Bond proposal. Kiva was recommended at the September 17, 2019 Governing Board as the next school in line for rebuilding/renovation, following the District’s annual school capacity analysis.
Kiva Principal Alice Spingola named a 23-member Visioning Committee in March to represent Kiva stakeholder views to architects Orcutt Winslow. The Phoenix-based firm was selected by the Board on Feb. 18, 2020 to provide architectural services for the project. Its first task is to lead the community feedback process that will help guide the architects as they define a collaborative design for Kiva’s reimagined campus.
Using a similar process employed last year with the Cherokee Elementary School rebuild, the architects have been working virtually with parents, Kiva teachers and staff, as well as the community, through a series of virtual meetings. As each conversation occurs, the vision for what Kiva will become moves more into focus. Five virtual meetings have taken place so far, with the meetings alternating weekly between at-large virtual meetings open to anyone and Visioning Committee discussions during which committee members process and prioritize the public input.
Orcutt Winslow’s lead architect for educational institutions, Tom O’Neil, is heading up the project. He explains that the virtual design process is helping keep the Kiva project on schedule. “The community is able to give more attention to the material we are presenting in these virtual meetings. Participants actually feel more comfortable about sharing their feedback in this manner,” he says.
“Architects are problem solvers by nature,” O’Neil continues, “and having the right hardware and software tools available makes us confident that even through these very interesting times, we are able to provide transparency and collaboration very successfully in a virtual environment.”
Aided by the live opinion polls, idea collection and data visualization capabilities of software such as Mentimeter, Jamboard and SketchUp, the community and Visioning Committee have established ‘Memorable Goals’ for the project. These goals are the criteria that the architects will ensure are represented in the design concept.
Through the virtual collaboration meetings held to date, the Kiva community has articulated the following aspects it would like to see in its updated school:
- a design that prioritizes student and staff safety and wellness
- flexible, modern indoor and outdoor learning environments
- a building design that fits into the school’s surroundings
- a plan that addresses campus access issues for pedestrians, bicyclists, school buses, parent drop-off/pick-up and parking; and
- high-performance structures, emphasizing energy efficiency and that accommodate technology needs
More virtual meetings are planned before Orcutt Winslow presents its recommendation to the Governing Board on whether the school should be renovated, rebuilt or some combination of the two. Community and Visioning Committee documents for the Kiva project and other related details can be found online at www.susd.org/Bond.
Kiva Elementary was built in 1957 as a K-8 school. Its most recent update took place in 2002. To learn more about the school, visit www.susd.org/Kiva and follow the school on Twitter and Facebook @KivaSUSD.
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Kiva Visioning Committee
Community Members: Sally Fleming, Lisa Ross, Colleen Steinberg, Traci Sullivan, Mike Vreeland, Daran Wastchak, Paradise Valley Police Chief Peter Wingert
Parent Members: Jon Arvizu, Trey Chappell, Cody Deike, Steve Fucello, Cori Hutchison, Andrew Keech, Ben Meek, Adam Story
Staff Members: Sheila Fullerton, Elizabeth Gardemann, Matt Gromek, Alison Grove, Alison Meyer, Alice Spingola, Karen Swift, Elise Whyte
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