The strategy for the addition and renovations to Fauquier High School unites disparate school wings into a coherent and harmonious campus. Removing an under-performing classroom wing creates a new central campus lawn around which all school activities congregate, supplemented with three additional courtyards dedicated to academics, arts, and athletics. The 4-story addition provides a new civic presence with an entrance plaza that improves the school’s image from the street. Local stone seat walls, brick detailing, and a high-performance terracotta rain screen system reference the town of Warrenton and surrounding county landscape.

The entrance level is composed of spaces shared by the school and community, where an administrative suite, student commons, media center, and forum surround an academic courtyard. A monumental stairway spills into the commons and leads to three floors of classroom academies. The stairway draws inspiration from New York City’s Active Design Guidelines to bolster health and fitness, prompting use (and behavior change) by featuring interactive graphics about the health benefits of using stairs and data about how high-up students and staff are at any given time. Comfortable furnishings and flexible arrangements allow stairway “break-out areas” for chance encounters and socialization.

Certified LEED Gold, Fauquier High School uses a ground source heat pump system and features an energy-efficient building envelope and lighting systems. Since its opening, the school has shown a 50% decrease in energy use per square foot per year.