In mid-May, Dekalb County School District celebrated the groundbreaking for the new Middle and High school at Sequoyah, located in Doraville, Georgia.
Due to the existing facilities having aged beyond their expected lifespans, a new campus was no longer a want, but a need to support the growth of future generations.
The project, designed by Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC) and DLR Group, focuses on balanced dedicated space for students of different ages, with shared amenities that foster a culture of collaboration.
“To me, the important thing is that we’re providing a new, innovative facility to replace the well-loved neighborhood school that unfortunately no longer serves the needs of the community,” Atlanta Architecture Practice Leader Madeline Gibbs Stewart explains. “They’ve been overcrowded for years, so we’re proud to provide a facility that will serve a new generation of students and promote the inclusion and diversity that is so integral to the community it serves.”
With space to cater 2800 full-time students in a unified building, the 485,446-square-foot Sequoyah facility will boast more than 150 instructional units, including general education classrooms, fine arts classrooms, science labs and career technology labs.
Additional common support areas consist of two media centers; check-in and administrative areas with secure entry vestibules; a high school auditorium and black box theater with indoor-outdoor connection; three gymnasiums, including both a competition gym equipped with a walking track and an auxiliary gym at the high school; and a shared kitchen with dedicated cafeterias for each space.
The state-of-the-art project will be completed in two phases, with the middle school expected to open its doors in the Fall 2027, and the high school following behind in 2029.
GMC is providing an array of services on the Sequoyah project including architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, environmental, civil engineering, electrical engineering, geotechnical engineering and construction materials testing.
Partners include DLR group, providing architecture, interior design, structural engineering, theatrical and AV consulting; Matheson-Ball & Associates, providing mechanical/HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection; with Camacho as the kitchen consultant and Gilbane Building Company as the general contractor.
