December 2006

Harriman Associates completes construction of $49 million Exeter High School

Construction is complete on the new 2,000-student Exeter High School in Exeter , New Hampshire , designed by Harriman Associates Architects and Engineers in Auburn and Portland , Maine .

The new 336,000-sq.-ft. school, which opened in September, is located on a 120-acre site and has a traditional look that is compatible with the area. The school is organized into two distinct zones – the classroom zone and the public zone. The front entrance of the school is easily recognizable by the location of the clock tower, a vertical element that clearly marks the building's entrance. When entering the school and passing through the secure and controlled entry vestibule located directly in front of the administration area, one has immediate access to the cafeteria, library, gymnasium, and auditorium. Locker rooms, weight room, health classrooms, and gym storage flank the rear of the gymnasiums, and music rooms and stage support spaces ring the auditorium. From the center of the building two corridors lead to the two-story classroom zone, which can easily be secured during evening and weekend events.

“Realizing the challenges of operating such a large school, the floor plan was organized to allow students to be grouped into smaller units,” says Robert C. Klinedinst, Principal and Architect on the project. If operated as smaller schools within a larger school there can be eight groupings of 250 students, two per grade.

Two groups share a locker commons and have their own satellite administration and guidance areas. Wanting to remain flexible, the school has the option to operate in a departmental organization. Both models can be easily accommodated in part because the science labs are located around the core of the wing.

Every opportunity was taken to bring natural light into the large school. A courtyard was added to ensure all offices have natural light, and windows and doors are provided at the ends of most corridors. And opportunities to bring natural light into the corners of the four commons and main circulation spine were taken and developed as opportunities for interaction by the placement of built-in benches.

The new school serves the towns of Brentwood, East Kingston, Kensington, Newfield and Stratham in addition to Exeter .

The general contractor was Harvey Construction of Bedford, New Hampshire.

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