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Featured Project: Ellen Ochoa Middle School

Posted on Sep. 16, 2025 / AIAPV Member News, Featured Projects /

Ellen Ochoa Middle School

Grimm + Parker Architects
Landover Hills, MD

The Challenge:
To relieve overcrowding in its existing schools in the Northern Area of the county, PGCPS commissioned the design and construction of a new 1,200-seat middle school on a site composed of land acquired in a multi-tiered land swap with M-NCPPC. The land acquired was in an active but underused park, Glenridge Community Park. The design team recognized the need to integrate the school into its context, physically and spiritually. In community and project planning committee sessions, the project principles were set to create a new school that would integrate with the Glenridge Park setting, provide connections with and learning spaces in nature, and become a community hub open and accessible to its diverse neighborhood.

The Solution:
Private and public zones of the building were established to separate focused instructional space for students and dynamic common areas accessible by the community after hours. The school is organized around a Central Student Commons area oriented toward a view to the park—a dynamic and flexible public space for student gathering—dining and special events link the public functions of the Gymnasium, Student Dining and Main Administration at the top tier of the site with the Academic Wing. The center of the Learning Commons is anchored by a Learning Stair that provides for quiet study or large gatherings and connecting Student Dining to the lower-level Media Center. Student Dining accesses food service to the north and faces a stage to the west. The Media Center also accesses Learning Courtyards to the north and south, offering opportunities for outdoor learning in a secure, supervisable environment.

The Physical Education Cluster (Gymnasium, Wellness Lab, Health Classrooms, Locker Rooms) and Performing Arts Wing: (Instrumental Music + Vocal Music Classroom, Dance Studio) on the west side of the Student Commons area, are located next to the outdoor courts and fields.

The three-story Academic Wing sits downhill from the Main Entrance integrating into the natural slope of the park and reducing the impact of the mass on the surrounding neighborhood, with one floor per grade, each broken into small learning communities with Collaborative Learning Areas to facilitate small-group and individualized instruction. The Academic shared spaces, including Science Labs, Visual Arts Labs, and the STEAM Lab, are located adjacent to the Main Stair to be accessible for students of all grades. A Regional Special Education Cluster is located on the third floor of the academic wing, providing specialized learning environments for students with emotional disabilities.

Building Character:
The development of the overall building character and imagery draws heavily from the project’s Design Guiding Principles, with the goal of integrating the school with its park setting. Exterior materials were chosen to harmonize the architecture with the surrounding nature. Masonry veneer was chosen to provide durable materials at the ground level perimeter and other locations. Corrugated metal panels are used to express the lighter nature of the trees and abundant landscaping surrounding the site. Interior colors, finishes, and graphics also have natural shapes, materials, and themes to bring the outside in.