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Wilbert Snow Elementary School

Middletown, CT

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There is no building in New England that is more beautiful, which means this is as good as it gets.

-Theodore Sergi, Connecticut State Education Commissioner at the Snow School ribbon cutting

Background and Context
Middletown is a diverse New England community of nearly 48,000 residents located along the Connecticut River. Originally settled in the early 17th century, the city is a vibrant and eclectic community known for 350 years of innovation in maritime trade, commerce, manufacturing and the arts.

Named for the educator, poet and former Governor of the State of Connecticut, C. Wilbert Snow, the most distinguishing feature of the existing Snow School was its unusual decentralized configuration. Uncommon in the northeast United States, this “California-style” campus plan featured core areas arrayed along the bus loop/drop off and small detached grade-level classroom buildings set back into a heavily wooded site. In order for these PreK-5 students to engage in all-school programs, students and teachers were required to travel to these main buildings, frequently during inclement weather. JCJ Architecture was retained to develop a plan that would reuse the existing gymnasium and auditorium – and link these with new classrooms - - to form a continuous structure.

196 -  - from OpenAsset