Franklinton Vocational School

Description

The vocational school studies the shifting and cutting away of floor plates and explores the relationship those floor plates can create through ramping and stacking. The shifting of floor plates and ramp connections creates a circuit-like circulation in each floor with 4 main elements: classroom programming, trade programming, hot desks, and studio spaces. Each of these elements borders the central hole that allows each floor to be visible from the others. As a result, five circuits are created for the five trades present in the program, producing smaller communities for each trade among the diversely programmed school. These circuits are then sandwiched between two main public programs to encourage the public to explore these private circuits and move vertically through the building. Finally, the gantry crane, attached to the roof of the building connects the public and private programs in an extravagant way. The experience of seeing the gantry crane move materials, appliances, etc. through the building pushes the boundary for what technology can do and creates a radical element in the building. The facade of the vocational school emphasizes the hierarchy of the floor plates about the rest of the elements. The compressing and expanding of the trusses stress the shifting floor plates and varying floor heights. As a whole, the vocational school emphasizes a collaborative, communitylike learning style and pushes the relationship between the public and private programs.