Greenhill School Valdes STEM + Innovation Center

The Greenhill School Valdez STEM + Innovation Center features classrooms and labs for Greenhill’s math and science departments, as well as an innovation corridor for middle and upper school students. With its collaborative spaces and dedicated labs for fabrication, robotics, and more, Greenhill School is empowering a new generation of innovators, collaborators, and problem solvers to pursue STEM programs.

The innovation lab provides technology tools for students to solve real-world problems, featuring a multipurpose flex facility, and an outdoor learning courtyard for teaching and learning. The design of the building focused on utilizing mass timber to invite a natural environment that welcomes transparency and connectivity to the campus. A modular design approach was essential, to allow flexibility as the school’s needs evolve. 

This approach not only allows for future flexibility, but also allows various learning environments to teach students about integrated sustainable design, daylight autonomy, rainwater harvesting, and energy conservation. 

The Valdez STEM + Innovation Center features mass timber as the backbone of its elevated structure, with five-ply cross-laminated timber (CLT) spanning typical floor space to Douglas Fir glulam beams and columns. The CLT incorporates a bespoke lay-up, balancing locally sourced Southern Yellow Pine in hidden layers with an exposed Douglas Fir surface to achieve both sustainability and architectural intent. Signature sawtooth pop-up clerestories, constructed with three-ply CLT and glulam, highlight the roof, while an open atrium introduces structural complexity. Careful coordination of diaphragm shear, collector axial forces, and transfer forces ensured the mass timber elements could effectively carry design loads without reliance on steel beams or concrete slabs.

Beneath the structure, an ICC 500-compliant tornado shelter is designed to endure extreme winds, debris impact, and the weight of the building above in a collapse scenario. All structural elements, including elevated columns, are engineered to ductilely detach under excessive force, preserving the integrity of the shelter and ensuring occupant safety.