For SAR’s new Early Learning Center, we focused our design on the school’s unique commitment to both community values and its openness to twenty-first-century education. The ELC is situated within the Bronx’s urban grid, but its doors open into another world.

The lobby greets students, faculty, and guests with the words ‘Curiosity, Excitement, and Togetherness etched into the wall; lighting, signage, and even lockers are hexagonal, alluding to SAR’s buzzing bee mascot and the ELC’s familiar nickname, “The Hive.” Continuing into the building, groups of classrooms are centered around multipurpose common areas, allowing teachers to develop active “learningscapes” that extend beyond their classrooms. These modular common spaces also support varied learning modalities: students with unique learning styles can access diverse setups primed for listening, seeing, and doing. Beyond the classroom, Hudson River views and a rooftop playground and garden invite students to explore outside. Juxtaposing the bustling Bronx with lush greenery, the outdoors becomes a natural extension of the curriculum.

The design also prioritizes a young student’s perspective: everything in the building is easily accessible to children, such that walking into the ELC is entering their world. Floors are designated by both color and number, with coordinated paint and furniture to support ease of navigation, even for students who haven’t yet learned reading or counting. The facility also serves staff effectively with collaborative workspaces and quiet break rooms.

The four-story ELC features classrooms and common spaces, but its functional design offers so much more. The ELC’s radically flexible design was also tested to its limit by COVID-19. When expansive learning and play areas became essential, the layout allowed students to return to school safely without sacrificing a critical sense of community.

The ELC integrates sustainable technologies and materials like motion-sensor LED lighting, low-flow plumbing, and strategic daylighting to reduce resource use while promoting comfort and focus. Durable, eco-conscious furnishings further reflect the school’s long-term commitment to environmental stewardship.

Beyond sustainability, the ELC’s design integrates emerging research on how physical spaces influence cognition and behavior. The design is guided by principles of embodied learning, which emphasizes that children absorb and retain knowledge through movement, spatial interaction, and sensory engagement – not just direct instruction.

We created the ELC to be an innovative learning facility to meet its occupants’ needs, but also to inspire students and staff to grow beyond its walls and beyond their limits.

Design: HSB Architecture & Design
Architecture: TWA Architecture
Photography: Katherine Marks