Goal 5 - Montclair Kimberley Academy

Goal 5: The Teaching and Learning Environment

MKA will ensure that our teaching and learning environments are attractive, flexible in purpose and conducive to teaching and learning and that they meet the aesthetic, physical, creative and technological goals of our programs and the needs of our students.

Implementation Goals

Develop a set of educational design principles informed by sustainability to guide developmentally appropriate space design, usage and care for all three campuses

We have reviewed the principles drafted thus far and considered possible layouts for presenting them. We are developing a plan gathering feedback on this work from various constituencies who will be using them. We hope to secure appropriate review and approval of the draft educational design principles in the fall of 2019, begin to use them, and refine them in the spring of 2020 based on our initial attempts to use them to guide decision-making at all levels.

Design Principles Committee

Design Principles Committee

Advance our understanding of the digital environments where learning can occur and the associated broadening of when and where teaching and learning can take place

This committee is meeting to generate content toward achieving this goal.

Digital Environment Committee

Digital Environment Committee

Transform current space at Middle School into a comprehensive academic center such as now exists at Upper School

This committee is meeting to generate content toward achieving this goal.

Middle School Academic Center Committee

Middle School Academic Center Committee

Redesign and upgrade Middle School athletic fields and outdoor play areas

This committee is meeting to generate content toward achieving this goal.

Middle School Fields Committee

Middle School Fields Committee

Develop plans and associated cost estimates and timetable for the phased installation of air conditioning in Primary, Middle and Upper School classrooms

This project is approximately 80% complete while remaining areas are the Upper School gym, Upper School science lower level (which would be part of a larger renovation), Middle School upper gym (part of larger renovation planned for 2020), and ultimately the replacement of the Middle School math wing window units (although technically these are already air conditioned). Upon completion in the summer of 2019, the projects to replace the Primary School window units and add air-conditioning to the final Middle School classrooms will bring us to at least 95% completion towards this goal.

Expand the facilities of the Primary School to include redesign of the campus site to address issues such as parking, car line and general safety as well as building a new flexible space

We continue to focus on who we are now, our program needs and vision for the future, and how to remain open to the opportunities that both our new and reinvigorated spaces will offer us. In addition to our thoughtful academic, arts, and physical education programming, we are mindful that space design and utility contributes to and can - if done right - support students' self and social awareness, responsible decision-making, and the development of other social/emotional learning skills. In order to make the most of them, both our brand-new spaces and reconfigured spaces in the current building will, in some instances, require the development of new routines and procedures. This perspective remains at the forefront of our work and will drive us forward in creating and ensuring an environment where all students feel seen, safe, valued, and engaged every day.

Primary School Facilities Committee

Primary School Facilities Committee

Design for the Present and the Future

We are mindful that space design and utility contributes to and can - if done right - support students' self and social awareness, responsible decision-making, and the development of other social/emotional learning skills.

Learning Environment

"It is imperative that MKA's learning environment is inviting, safe, and sparks creativity in all members of our community."

-Alyson Waldman '99, Director of Admissions, Parent '30