Russell Davidson, president and principal of Mount Kisco-based Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson Architects PC, sees his architectural firm at the forefront of modern education.
His 30-employee general practice firm has been sought out by several school districts in the region to help construct and implement “Innovation Labs,” tech-rich areas suitable for both large and small group instruction, and “Fabrication Labs” that foster the creation of products. Both kinds of school spaces, said Davidson, help students and faculty adapt to the shift in 21st century education from conventional lectures to tech-heavy group collaborations.
Innovation labs focus more on bringing together students from science, arts and literature and bridging traditional divisions of disciplines to work on a themed project. The goal of educators and the architectural firm working on “fab” labs, Davidson said, is to create an inviting space for students of differing academic disciplines to work on projects that involve the making of a product – anything from a small woodworking project to a circuit board or even computer hardware. Labs are created in conjunction with new school curricula that place a heavy emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.
“As the flipped classroom permeates secondary education, the function of the school building is also changing,” said Davidson, the 2016 president elect of the American Institute of Architects. “There are more flexible spaces more conducive to group work and small group instruction rather than lectures. It”™s an exciting time in the school system full of significant change.”
KG&D was hired earlier this year by Scarsdale public schools to construct an innovation lab that could hold two full-sized classes simultaneously and fitted with flexible seating and interactive technology. A new design lab occupying the space where the school”™s auto shop previously stood will also be built. That space will allow students to create products and prototypes and test original ideas with technology including woodworking tools, a three-dimensional printer and laser cutters.
The price of the lab can vary depending on size and other remedial work, but Davidson said the one being built at Scarsdale will cost roughly $750,000 because of the comprehensive renovation that is required. The price of its technology components, he said, is very reasonable.
Davidson said pending state approval for the Scarsdale project, he expects construction to begin next summer and estimated it could be completed by late 2016 or early 2017.
Subject themes of the labs include invention and architecture, components Davidson said are common at the college level. He cited the three- decade-old Massachusetts Institute of Technology”™s Media Lab as an example of what the labs strive to emulate.
The firm is also working on a plan for Brewster Central School District that would convert its existing library into a flexible space holding group collaboration areas, computer work stations, a small conference room, a presentation and video viewing space and grab-and-go food offerings. The plan, under review by the district, would also include a 945-square-foot innovation lab classroom, a 429-square-foot college career room and a 3-D printer.
In 2011, KG&D completed a new library and digital media arts center at Ridgefield Academy in Connecticut which incorporates traditional study features with video screens, iPads and an interactive technology studio with a green screen room.
Davidson said the $12 million, 27,000-square-foot Media Arts Lab his firm completed at the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville in 2008 was a model for the digital media center at the private Connecticut school.
A 3,000 square foot innovation lab was also introduced at Middletown High School by the Mount Kisco firm. KG&D has also done work for Bronxville public schools.
“They come in all different sizes and every school district has a different approach,” Davidson said. . “Brewster”™s innovation lab was done in combination with the school library. Middletown was linked to its technology and engineering curriculum. Each truly is customized.”
