LearningSpring School for Autistic Students in NYC Earns LEED Gold Certification

Students who fall within the autism spectrum are often overlooked in public education. To address the problem, a group of New York City parents came together in 2001 to create the <a href="http://www.learningspring.org/">LearningSpring School</a>, a private day school that serves 108 students in grades K-8. Thanks to the thoughtful design of <a href="http://www.pbdw.com/">Platt Byard Dovell White Architects</a>, the students will be moving to a new eight-story, vertically oriented campus on the corner of 20th Street and 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. The new school was built specifically to accomodate the needs of the children, incorporates a variety of green technologies, and has earned LEED Gold certification.

Students who fall within the autism spectrum are often overlooked in public education. To address the problem, a group of New York City parents came together in 2001 to create the <a href="http://www.learningspring.org/">LearningSpring School</a>, a private day school that serves 108 students in grades K-8. Thanks to the thoughtful design of <a href="http://www.pbdw.com/">Platt Byard Dovell White Architects</a>, the students will be moving to a new eight-story, vertically oriented campus on the corner of 20th Street and 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. The new school was built specifically to accomodate the needs of the children, incorporates a variety of green technologies, and has earned LEED Gold certification.

The new facility accommodates the specific social, physical, and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/nyc/solar-one-and-green-design-lab-offer-nyc-schools-the-chance-to-win-9000-for-reducing-energy/">educational</a> needs of those it serves.

Classrooms are designed in pairs so that resources can be shared in a common area between the two.

Materials for both the interior and exterior were carefully selected. On the exterior, an aluminum and stainless steel sunscreen supported by an external steel armature protect the building from the southeast exposure to the sun. A terracotta rain-screen extends along the base of the building.

Thanks to the architects' meticulous attention to materials and design, the building has achieved <a href="http://inhabitat.com/nyc/empire-state-building-achieves-leed-gold-certification/">LEED Gold certification</a>. It's the first of its kind in New York State to achieve such a rank under the LEED For Schools program.

Several distinguishing features helped The LearningSpring School gain this recognition. Every classroom enjoys neighborhood views and is filled with natural light. Energy-saving specs such as the aluminum sunshades and zinc rain screen spandrels which help minimize solar gain, operable windows for natural ventilation, low water-flow fixtures, and high-efficiency equipment for energy savings also distinguish the design.

The first two stories are reserved for the lunch room, gymnasium and library while the upper six stories are divided. Two are for lower school classrooms, two are for shared therapy and special education spaces, and two are for the upper classrooms.

On the exterior, an aluminum and stainless steel sunscreen supported by an external steel armature protect the building from the southeast exposure to the sun.

Site plan as seen from above. The school is located on the corner of 20th Street and 2nd Avenue.

Rendering above shows the rainscreen wall and spandrel assembly (left) and the curtain wall assembly (right).