Over the summer, Laramie County School District (LCSD) broke ground on the new Mountain View 5/6 Elementary School. Anticipating a summer 2028 opening, the school will serve LCSD South Triad and is the final step in the District’s long-term strategic plan to consolidate 5th and 6th grade students into three “upper elementaries.” The elementaries are part of LCSD’s plan to free up capacity at existing schools while offering young students a transitionary step before junior high.
Designed to accommodate 650 students, Mountain View consists of four classroom learning communities with a shared collaborative space connecting them. Each of the seven classrooms features an operable glass overhead door that allows the room to seamlessly merge with the central learning commons.
Unique to LCSD’s South Triad, Mountain View serves a larger percentage of special needs students, demanding an expanded Special Education (SPED) suite. This key piece of programming is centrally located along the main corridor between the four learning communities to support integration with the general instruction classrooms. By grouping the public spaces used for after-school events and athletics, such as the admin suite, cafeteria, and gymnasium, on the south half of the building, these spaces can be contained while the north half of the building remains secure.
Throughout design, it was paramount that the building reflects its connection with the community it serves, as well as its integration with the site. Two key principles served the goal: a focus on the concept of weaving, and a strong link between inside and outside environments.
Mountain View will unify students from a handful of smaller elementary schools, with a design that represents the great strength and versatility that comes when independent parts are woven together. Project Designer Teddy Gustafson developed a pattern of protruding bricks inspired by traditional woven fabrics that are used in key spots on the exterior of the building as a cost-effective way to add character and visual interest. At the main entry, the weaving concept continues through a custom stenciled concrete stain that will begin outside and carry into the building. The pattern features nine strands that will converge as they approach the entrance, reflecting the nine feeder elementary schools that will form the new Mountain View Red Dogs community. Together, the finishes elevate conventional materials into meaningful expressions of the overall design concept.
Providing access to views, quality daylight, and thoughtful material transitions all helped to support the larger goal of connecting the school to its site. At the main entry, the exterior brick wraps through to the center of the building, and the wood soffit of the exterior overhangs continue into the main vestibules, allowing the building to open itself up to the site and smooth out the entry transition.
Within Mountain View, spaces are organized to maximize exterior windows in as many rooms as possible. Where exterior windows were not feasible, strategically placed light monitors are used to bring natural light and shadow in from above. These high-volume spaces become natural focal points that break up the long central corridor and the large learning commons in each of the learning communities. The school’s driving concepts meet in the unified interior palette through earth-toned and grounded colors that complement the site, and patterns and textures of both the flooring and wall coverings that connect back to the theme of weaving.
Mountain View 5/6 Elementary reflects LCSD’s and the state of Wyoming’s commitment to the success of their students and the value of spaces that support them in that journey. By crafting a unified design that will help foster an identity based in the community, and through spaces that embrace connection with nature, JLG believes that Mountain View and the Laramie County School District will be well equipped in achieving their goal.
