June 11, 2008
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Kathryn Reith, Director of Communications |
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(425) 702-3342 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Redmond, Wash. – Ground was broken today on the new Robert Frost Elementary School in Kirkland, which will replace the existing building as part of the Lake Washington School District modernization program. The program began with Phase 1 in 1998, updating 11 schools. Frost will be the first school to be modernized in Phase 2. (A new school, Rachel Carson Elementary in Sammamish, was the first school built in this phase.) Voters approved $436 million in bonds in 2006 to pay for the program.
Planning and design for the new Frost Elementary began in Spring 2006, soon after the bond measure was passed. Studio Meng Strazarra has designed the building. The building design was developed using the district’s educational specifications, which spells out the specific needs for school buildings, while also listening to the needs of the Frost community. Principal Sue Anne Sullivan, staff, parents, neighbors worked with district facilities staff to provide that direction.
The building and its grounds will contain references to Frost’s poems. For example, the building will be tied to the poet’s life and work through items such as the birch trees that will be part of the landscaping, in honor of his poem, “Birches.” Artwork commissioned for the interior will be based on a butterfly theme, after Frost’s poem, “My Butterfly.”
The new building will be built on the same site as the old Frost Elementary, behind the old building. Students will occupy the old building through the 08-09 school year. The new building wlil open in the fall of 2009.
Entrance to the new Robert Frost Elementary School, Kirkland, WA, courtesy Studio Meng Strazzara
Front: Stephen Fleming, President; Emily Wright, Vice President, Frost Elementary Student Council
Back: Principal Sue Anne Sullivan, Frost Elementary; Superintendent Chip Kimball
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About Lake Washington: Lake Washington School District is a high-performing public school district serving Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish, Washington. It is the sixth largest district in the state of Washington, with over 23,000 students in 50 schools.