LPS Facilities Assessment Summary

Project Scope
Conduct Master Planning tasks for Phase 1 which includes 8 of the 21 district schools. Tasks to include:
Educational Visioning; District wide Enrollment Projection; Enrollment Programming and capacity
analysis; Facility Assessments; Development of Option(s); Conceptual Cost Models; 10 year Capital Plan
The schools explored:
Community Day Arlington (K-4)
Arlington Middle (5-8)
Tarbox School (1-5)
UP Academy Oliver (6-8)
School for Exceptional Studies (1-12)
High School Learning Center (9-12)
Lawlor School (Kindergarten)
Leahy School (K-5)
Oliver Partnership School (1-5)
UP Academy Leonard (6-8)
Lawrence High School Campus (9-12) (Educational Planning only)
Building Assessments
During the month of August in 2015, a team of SMMA professionals representing various building trades
met with the school leadership and facilities staff prior to conducting the site and facilities assessment.
SMMA toured each building to assess the current physical condition of the structure, systems and
finishes. The overall physical assessment encompassed civil, architectural, mechanical, electrical as well
as fire and safety regulation compliance; school safety and security; and emergency communications.
Current transportation and circulation on and around the site was also discussed and observed.
This assessment combined with existing data (prior studies, plans etc.) will culminate into a document
listing the existing general overall facility conditions and provide a database of facilities information for
future Master Planning.
It should be noted that most of the schools reviewed were constructed in the late 19th or early 20th
centuries. The building configurations, room sizes and other characteristics reflect those periods of
educational thinking and construction.
Educational Planning
During the first two weeks of September, SMMA educational planning specialists met with principals
and key staff at schools in the north central district and the high school. The intent was to understand
how the schools operate today; how they would like to operate in the future.
Space Analysis SMMA developed diagrammatic floor plans that illustrate:
Existing conditions current use
Programmatic (area) deficiencies as compared to the Massachusetts School Building Authority
(MSBA) space standards. Deficiencies are categorized by:

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o
o
o
o

Inappropriate location or adjacency

Not included in a typical MSBA project
Net square feet (NSF)10% greater than MSBA guidelines
NSF 20% or more, less than MSBA guidelines
NSF meets MSBA guidelines (-20% to +10%)

Demographics SMMAs demographics consultant, Cropper GIS, conducted a study to develop a

student population forecast. This objective of this plan is to develop a comprehensive demographic
study of LPS either for the district total or by small area levels (by school) using 2010 Census
information. The results of the detailed demographic study serve as a basis for comparison/evaluation
of their in-house projections, along with understanding forecasted trends of the total population in
addition to school-aged children.
Lawrence High School Visioning - On November 13th, the SMMA educational planning team
facilitated a full-day Visioning Workshop with participants from the greater high school community. The
group included: students; teachers; administrators from both the high school and central office; parents
and multiple community partners and leaders; 52 participants in all. The intent was to develop common
language understanding, and learning goals with regard to 21st century teaching and learning practices
and the spaces that support, and to begin to develop a shared vision for restructuring Lawrence High
School.
Agenda items for the day include:
Best practices in 21st Century teaching and learning
o Elements of Powerful Learning
o Interactive Presentation about 21st Century Teaching and Learning
o Creation of 21st Century Learning Goals
o SCOG Analysis (Strengths, Challenges, Opportunities and Goals) of 21st Century Learning at
Lawrence HS
Best practices in 21st Century facility design patterns
o Interactive presentation about design patterns and possibilities
o Design pattern prioritization
o No-to-low cost ways to improve your learning environment
o Bubble diagramming and Blue Sky ideas for next steps and creative ways to evolve your
space
Share design ideas on how LHS might reconfigure to better serve the students for different teaching
methodologies to facilitate 21C skills.
Development of Options; Conceptual Cost Models; 10 year Capital Plan are currently
underway