There's a lot of Yes at Hyla

Hyla_CapitalCampaign

Yes is a word that welcomes student ideas, encourages growth, and shares enthusiasm. It’s a word full of challenge, optimism, and inclusion. It allows independence and choice. It affirms identity and acknowledges accomplishment. Hyla is full of stories of yes and the capital campaign is about building new spaces where those stories can flourish.

Investing in What We Do Best

The campus improvement project is about enhancing the powerful work that already happens at Hyla every day by providing teachers and students with improved learning spaces and resources. Teachers and students are the heart of this school and the close connections they cultivate remain the foundation of our program. The building project allows us to intentionally design our learning spaces for the truly student-centered learning that defines Hyla.

Blueprint for the Future

This project is also an opportunity to align our spaces with what 21st century learning requires: integrated technology and flexible space for collaboration and projects. All phases of the project are about taking what we do so well at Hyla with project-based learning and giving it the space and resources worthy of its value. We are excited to share some history, what has been accomplished to date, and the exciting work ahead.

Take a Look

We are excited to share our plans with you!

Our comprehensive campus improvement project invests in all subject areas and all teachers. Every learning space on campus is enhanced through this phased project with features like more classroom space, new furnishings, increased storage, more natural light, environmentally sustainable materials, and new resources and technologies.

This project accomplishes a wide range of need without tearing down any existing buildings, by adding only one new building to our campus footprint, and by preserving the historic farm character of our school.

Scroll through for a tour and details about what this project makes possible for Hyla students and teachers.

At a Glance

Look what is happening at Hyla!

  • New, enlarged classrooms for: Humanities, English, Math, Art, Spanish, History, and Science.
  • New makerspace called the HyLab.
  • New multi-purpose building with performance space and a teaching kitchen.
  • New centralized admin offices and enlarged counselor's office.
  • New lounge for students and teachers.
  • Increased storage and flexible space for small group projects and meetings.
  • Relocated library.

Phase I - complete

Accomplished June 2018 – January 2019

We launched construction in the summer of 2018 and created:

  • 3 new, enlarged classrooms with ample storage and skylights for Humanities, English and Math (north blue building).
  • New foundation under part of the red building for structural integrity.
  • New centrally-located main entrance and admin offices (red building).
  • Flexible meeting spaces for teachers, students, parents and tutoring (red building).
  • New library installed in the historic heart of the red building.

Phase II - complete

Accomplished June 2019 – September 2019

In just a few summer months, the entire yellow building underwent extensive renovations and now features:

  • New, enlarged classrooms for Art, History, and Spanish with ample storage and increased daylight.
  • New, enlarged science classroom and lab with ample storage and a garage door connecting to the HyLab.
  • A new makerspace, called the HyLab - more details on the next slide.
  • Renovated restrooms.

The south blue building also received the following renovations:

  • New, enlarged office for our school counselor.
  • New lounge and kitchenette for students and teachers.

Phase II continued

Building Creativity: the HyLab
Collaborate, question, create

More than a work area, a makerspace is an educational concept that provides students with easily-accessible materials, technologies, and resources to provoke inquiry, teamwork, and problem solving.

While hands-on and project-based learning has always been fundamental to the Hyla experience, the new HyLab merges practice, mindset, and environment in a consolidated space where students can apply academic content from multiple disciplines and work in teams to innovate and arrive at new solutions. All classes and subject areas will use this new space, as well as Electives.

The HyLab is located in the lower yellow of the yellow building and is run by teacher Jeff Steele.

Phase III

Building confidence:  Multi-Purpose Building
Gather, perform, connect

Gathering as a community is at the heart of Hyla’s culture. For this first time in Hyla’s history, we will have a space where our entire community can fit together – students, parents, faculty, staff, and friends. This new space will host our most beloved traditions, from school dances to culminating ceremonies.

The new multi-purpose building will allow us to gather comfortably and safely, with easy access to what we need for the diverse ways we use the space, from celebrations, to student performances, to special events. This flexible new space is designed to be used dynamically so that it can accommodate a wide-range of activities, including occasional PE, lectures, student art displays, and more.

At a school where participation and inclusion are core values, every Hyla student takes to the stage for drama performances, which will now benefit from new lighting and sound equipment, more audience capacity, an enlarged backstage area, and increased storage. Beyond drama, all classes will use the new stage for presentations to practice public speaking and develop confidence and voice.

Phase III continued

Building community: Teaching Kitchen
Assemble, nourish, serve

The kitchen has long been a central and lively hub of activity at Hyla, from daily lunches, to cooking chemistry, to conference meals for teachers, to community service. We gather in the kitchen for learning and nourishment.

The new building will include a teaching kitchen where an entire section of students can gather for classes and electives. The new space will also accommodate parent volunteers, provide new equipment and storage for community events, and welcome teachers and students during breaks and lunchtime.

Phase II

Yellow building, lower level

Phase II

Yellow building, upper level

Phase II

New multi-purpose building
along Bucklin Hill Road

Phase III

North and east elevations of new multi-purpose building

Phase III

The new multi-purpose building will feature a long, covered porch that connects to the existing north blue building to create a cohesive flow and visual continuity.

Our commitment to the Hyla community

The building project follows a set of thoughtful guiding commitments that reflect our philosophy and values:

hyla-student-learningAll of the new spaces are designed to enhance student learning, but even the process of creating those spaces prioritizes student work. We carefully sequenced the construction timeline to ensure that no teachers were displaced due to Phase I construction. Construction began in June and three new classrooms were ready on the first day of school.

With this building project we are formalizing our commitment to environmental sustainability. Both phases of the building project incorporate environmentally sustainable practices wherever possible to reduce our carbon footprint:

  • With the installation of energy efficient heat pumps, the building project moves Hyla off the oil-fired boiler and dramatically improves our energy efficiency while alsoenhances indoor and outdoor air quality.  
  • The thermal envelope of older buildings is improved through the HVAC system, increased insulation, and energy efficient windows and doors.
  • Indoor environmental quality is improved with low-emitting materials (carpet, paint, etc.) and increased daylighting (skylights, new windows, glass-paned doors, etc.).
  • Phase II of the building project will incorporate solar panels to introduce alternative energy sources and help our campus contribute to the energy grid.

Renovations and new construction prepreserve-legacyserve the historic roots of our campus. We are committed to maintaining a consistent look and feel throughout the building project and are thankful to Studio Hamlet Architects for beautifully realizing this goal. Our commitment was put to the test when we renovated the red farmhouse building that needed a new foundation for safety and structural integrity. Extensive interior work involved hand digging over 80 cubic yards of dirt that was then removed via conveyor belt (shout out to the construction crew!) The outside is the same charming red farmhouse, but the inside is entirely new: safer, cleaner, and designed specifically for our administrative needs.

The Hyla Board of Trustees is also committed to open communication and we welcome any chance to share our enthusiasm for this project! New methods of communication – like the Symposium events and School Communiqués – help to keep all Hyla families informed about this project. You can also check our website for updates about the building project.

Funding and the Capital Campaign

At Hyla we achieve things through community and the campus improvement project is no different. To complete this important work in Hyla’s growth, we will rely on generosity from our community.

We are inspired by and grateful to early donors for their strong  enthusiasm, deep generosity, and community leadership. Early investments in this campaign come from all parts of our community, including current parents, alumni families, former leadership, and current and past trustees.

Everyone in the Hyla community plays a role in the success of this campaign. Together we can reach our goal and ensure years of child-centered, hands-on learning at Hyla.

Make a Gift
IMG_7701

Project Team

team

Carley Construction: 

Dave Carley
Tim LeFebvre

Studio Hamlet Architects: 

Russ Hamlet
Brandon Hogg

Hyla Board Buildings & Grounds Committee: 

Steve Prentice, (alumni parent)
Dave Cinamon (alumni parent)
Eun-Sook Goidel (alumni parent)
Karen Rice (Board President, alumni parent)

Capital Campaign Committee: 

Suzanne Messinger (Head of School)
Karen Rice (Board President, alumni parent)
Barb Maduell (Capital Campaign consultant)
Katherine Johns (Director of Advancement; current parent)
Dana Willerford (Trustee, alumni parent)
Cortney George (Trustee, alumni parent)
Scott James (Trustee, current and alumni parent)

 

Behind the Scenes

Photo Mar 01, 7 43 15 AM - Copy
IMG_4498 (1)
Jennifer Haase
Kate Painting

How it All Began

Like many Hyla stories, this one begins with Paul Carroll. As Interim Head in 2016-2017, Paul worked with the Board to address serious challenges affecting our campus: aging buildings, inadequate classroom size, insufficient storage, zero flexible space, and health and safety concerns. Paul strongly advocated for the change needed to address these issues and we are grateful for his emphatic nudge. Through a formal facilities assessment, the board took an honest inventory of what needed to change at Hyla in order to make sure that our program and mission remain strong into the future. When Suzanne became Head of School last year, the board was already committed to much needed renovation and construction. Building upon years of careful planning by previous boards to prepare Hyla for a campus improvement project, the Board voted to not only address infrastructure, but do so in a way that cements environmental sustainability as an official school practice and core value.

Student Involvement

Involving students has also been a goal since the beginning. At the first Morning Meeting of the year, we invited the architects and the construction team to meet with students and answer questions. This was also an opportunity for students to express their gratitude for the exciting work being done on their behalf. Since then, students have continued to be involved in the building project in many different ways. One group of students is working with science teacher Jeff Steele to build a 3-D model of the entire campus as an Elective. Students in Kimberley Gorman Trick’s Global Education class will research how other schools implement sustainable practices.  Some students learned about the equations used to calculate the exact slope of the new front steps thanks to Carley Construction Lead, Tim LeFebvre. And all students participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony to open the newly renovated administrative offices in the red building –a wonderful way for students to practice gratitude, but also a way for the adults at Hyla to respect the connection students feel to their school. As the project progresses, student inquiry will continue to be an important part of the process, with questions like “what are we passionate about that should be included in this project?” and “what are the adults not yet thinking about?”

Teacher Involvement

Teacher input has been an important part of how this project has progressed. The wish list that teachers created back in 2016 with Paul Carroll became a founding punch list for the building project. Every need on that list has been addressed – and then some. We have included teacher voices along the way so that their input translates directly into building design. Teachers collaborate with architects and the Buildings & Grounds Committee to arrive at creative solutions to classroom needs. While we owe our teachers much gratitude and praise for their resourcefulness and patience with space limitations over the years, we owe them so much more. The building project gives them the proper resources and places to do their important work with students.

Embracing Construction

Even with a construction zone in the middle of our campus since June, our program continued on as brightly as ever – plays, Mini-Term, art installations, engineering projects, and more. We extend our gratitude to Tim LeFebvre, Dave Carley, and everyone at Carley Construction for accomplishing their work with minimal disruption to our daily routine. We are also thankful to teachers, students, and parents for continuing all our beloved traditions right around the construction zone – from the Barn Party to conference meals to PE and math.

Interacting with the physical environment of their school has long been part of the Hyla experience. Whether placing engraved rocks in the poetry garden for graduation, weaving beads onto outdoor webs, or building natural sculptures during retreats, Hyla students connect to the places of Hyla in countless ways. The construction zone was no different. In true Hyla style, we artfully absorbed the construction zone into our school. Here is a picture of art teacher, Kate Lovejoy, and history teacher, David Maron, painting the plywood that wrapped around the red building to create a student artwork installation. Even with hammers and saws going, the spirit of Hyla remains strong!