Colorful corridors lead to each learning neighborhood, consisting of a shared activity commons, 5 classrooms, and a learning lab courtyard.
The cafeteria includes a multi-purpose stage—perfect for performances, assemblies, and more. An operable partition between the cafeteria and gym can be opened for additional space when hosting larger groups.
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Form Meets Function
A flexible central commons opens into the Discovery Center through a wide hallway lined with built-in cubbies. The two-story Discovery Center is filled with natural light and looks out onto one of the three outdoor learning studios.
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Wayfinding Through Color
The design utilizes three color palettes—red, green, and blue—to distinguish each of the three academic wings.
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In the cafeteria, replacing long, foldable tables with round tables has transformed the space into a more intimate, family-style setting. This change encourages quieter, more focused conversations and allows students across different grade levels to interact. The removal of a stage made room for additional windows, enhancing natural light and reinforcing a connection to the outdoors—something the original design lacked at eye level.
Columbus, Indiana is world-renowned for its modern architecture. One of the most notable schools, Parkside Elementary, was designed by Norman C. Fletcher of The Architects Collaborative (TAC) in 1962. CSO’s renovations honor Fletcher’s unique Arts and Crafts (Bauhaus) style that incorporated clean lines, abundant natural daylighting, geometric shapes, and use of wood beaming and decking.
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Grade-level neighborhoods consist of five classrooms with large glass doors that open to an activity commons space which overlooks a secure courtyard. Each pair of classrooms shares a small group room and cubby alcove for student storage.
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Each grade-level “Academic House” consists of a shared common area, four classrooms with small group rooms in between, restrooms, and a shared STEM lab.
At the center of the school is a cafeteria on the first floor with a large gathering stair leading up to the media commons.
Strategic Separation of Spaces
The far end of the building houses athletic and performing arts spaces, including a flexible theater and two gymnasiums.
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In place of a standard cafeteria, a large student commons serves multiple purposes throughout the day as a gathering space for students before and after school, an event space, or an instructional space during school hours.
Learning on Display
STEM labs overlook the Student Commons with foldable glass doors that open up to connect the two spaces.
Designed for Maximum Flexibility
A multi-purpose performance / large group instruction space features retractable theater seating and padded athletic flooring, allowing the space to be used for overflow from the main gym, large student gatherings, or community events.
Sustainable design is integrated throughout the building with features such as a solar array, geothermal heat pump system, locally-sourced Indiana limestone, low-E windows, and a digital display that allows students to track energy consumption in real time.
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A new cafeteria offers eight food stations with a combination of assembled-to-order and grab-and-go options. To accommodate growing class sizes, the new space seats 860—nearly triple the size of the previous cafeteria—with room to expand to 1,000 seats.
An existing auditorium was transformed into a true performing arts theater.
The new theater design involved expanding the auditorium with new sloped and stadium seating, a new orchestra pit, front of stage area, overhead catwalks, and new lighting and sound systems.
A new 10,000 sf weight room, locker rooms, and a coaches office were added to the main level. These spaces are used by the school’s athletic programs, physical education classes, and the community. In addition to state-of-the-art weight lifting equipment, the space includes a medicine ball wall, battle-ropes, and lanes for the 40-yard dash.
A 7,100 sf wrestling room and associated locker rooms and office are located above the weight room. The entire floor is covered in wrestling mats with seventeen practice circles and two competition circles. The walls are also covered with mat material and custom graphics.
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Previously, there were not spaces within the school that allowed for classes to break out into smaller groups or spaces to accommodate informal study sessions with direct access to instructors. A new study area now provides a space for students to break out of the adjacent classrooms to work on group projects and study after school as a group or individually.
Where STEM Learning Meets Real-World Innovation
The Innovation Center is home to modern STEM classrooms and laboratories for Cathedral’s Math & Science Academy, engineering and robotics programs, and more.
In Cathedral’s previous traditional education model, the classroom and lab areas were separate spaces within the same classroom, forcing one of the areas to go unused. The new design accommodates multiple labs and classes at the same location, increasing collaboration and allowing for an increase in efficiency in new and existing spaces.
New Cafeteria Creates a Destination for Students
The Innovation Center also contains the relocated dining and kitchen space in the lower level, allowing students a more flexible approach to food service and more options to the traditional lunch period. An additional Café allows students to utilize a “grab-n-go” concept during the day.
CSO’s unwavering commitment to understanding Cathedral’s goals for the project resulted in an Innovation Center design which exceeded the school’s expectations. We could not have worked with a better team, They were responsive to our wants and needs, quick to respond, and extremely professional. The whole process was easy. “
–Grace Rodecap, Cathedral High School Director of Marketing
As quoted in Building Excellence Magazine
A New Front Door to Campus
The Innovation Center was designed and constructed as an addition to Kelly Hall. To acheive the square footage goals of the project, the existing main entry would need to be replaced.
Generations of Cathedral students and staff entered the building through the main entry in Kelly Hall. When it was determined that the addition would encompass the main entry, designers opted to retain the original entry and original access to Kelly Hall by incorporating it into the new design. The new addition incorporates a three-story open atrium between the old Kelly Hall and the architecture of the new addition. Exterior materials used on the addition are blonde brick (same used on SLC), glass, metal panel and stone veneer panels. The old limestone façade of Kelly Hall was preserved as a feature of the new, glass-enclosed front entrance.
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A Welcoming New Entrance
A new, prominent student entrance anchors the addition, creating a welcoming arrival point and reinforcing the Senior Academy’s role as a central hub for student life. Site enhancements not only improve functionality and traffic flow but also contribute to a more cohesive and student-friendly campus experience.
A brand-new hub for athletics, wellness, and school pride.
An 80,000 sf fieldhouse features four full-sized basketball courts; an 8-lane, 200-meter indoor track; bleachers; and dedicated areas for long jump, pole vault, and high jump events.
Additional new and renovated athletic support spaces, include: a new home football locker room, basketball locker room, track and physical education locker rooms, a cardio/fitness room, batting cages, golf simulator, training room with a hydrotherapy tub, and other support spaces. These transformational new spaces are designed to meet the needs of modern athletic programming and student wellness while showcasing the school’s brand and identity.
The BHS Senior Academy was originally built for a senior class of 600 students in 2006. This expansion allows the facility to serve classes of 1,000 students, adding critical classroom and educational support spaces, including study areas and a large group instruction room.
The design of the new spaces mirror the renovations to other portions of the High School that CSO completed in 2020.
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The new addition enables Noblesville High School to expand its in-house Career and Technical Education offerings with new classrooms for Engineering, Robotics/Automation, Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), and Biomedical Science courses. Also included in the expansion is a new welding lab and a 5,000 square foot construction lab.
Beyond the Classroom
Throughout the addition, small group rooms and flexible seating areas support collaboration and group work.
A grab-and-go Bistro provides upper-level students with a college-style dining option along with new seating areas for students seeking a quieter dining environment outside of the school’s cafeteria.
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