Presented By:
- The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) Glenn A. Cunha, Inspector General
- The Massachusetts Certified Public Purchasing Official Program (MCPPO)
- The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA)
(Pictured above) Estabrook Principal Sandy Trach
addressesparticipants. This was the largest attended
Story of A Building Seminar to date.
For the third consecutive year the MSBA has collaborated with the Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General’s MCPPO Program to provide a training opportunity at a recently completed MSBA school building. The day-long Story of a Building Seminar highlights MSBA processes and provides attendees with relevant information about partnering with the MSBA from the perspective of local school districts.
The program was held on February 4th at the Estabrook Elementary School in Lexington. An audience of approximately 100 people, representing school districts recently invited by the MSBA into the grant process and other districts looking forward to a future invitation, experienced a unique opportunity to tour the new elementary school and learn from panel speakers about the MSBA’s school building partnership. The seminar included a speaking program, panel discussions, the film “Most Likely To Succeed,” and a tour of the Estabrook facility provided by school administrators and the design team. See the links below for more information from the seminar:
- Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General
- The MCPPO Program and Requirements
- Educational Facility Planning page
- Story of a Building Program
- Story of a Building Agenda
- Overview of the Joseph Estabrook Elementary School Project
Highlights
With discussions about 21st Century Education abounding, the focus of the program in Lexington was on the importance of a strong, forward-looking educational program. A district’s “Educational Program” is submitted to the MSBA and reviewed by the Facilities Assessment Subcommittee. Two members of that Subcommittee, MSBA Board members, Terry Kwan and Matt Deninger, were participants on a panel entitled, “Keys to MSBA and DESE Support for the Educational Program and Next Steps.”
During the panel discussion, “21st Century Teaching and Learning and the Impact on School Design,” MSBA Senior Architect, Karl Brown, informed the group about a helpful resource, the Educational Facility Planning page, replete with examples of MSBA-approved Educational Program documents and learning environment design documents. This new resource is expected to be a great utility to districts new to the MSBA grant program. Mr. Brown noted “The educational program is the driver of not only the MSBA process, but the school design process.”
MSBA Board Member Terry Kwan emphasized the importance of a well-planned educational program and how that plan should guide the design process to best fulfill the needs of the District. Ms. Kwan also provided useful insight to the components of a successful partnership between the district and the MSBA in the building process.
MSBA Board Member Matt Deninger discussed the importance of forward-thinking in the educational program and design of the school for districts to accommodate both the needs of today and 25-50 years into the future. Mr. Deninger also talked about special education program spaces and the advantages of designing those spaces to be integrated into the life of the building.
The fourth panelists: (L to R) MSBA Senior Architect Karl Brown, Scituate Superintendent Dr. John McCarthy, and Duxbury Assistant Superintendent and Curriculum Director, Dr. Laurie Hunter. Mr. Brown gave examples for educational program planning and provided information about resources here on the MSBA website to help districts in their planning.
