NORTHWEST ISD

Seven Hills Elementary School

With a fast-growing student population, Northwest ISD needed to replace Seven Hills with a facility to accommodate increased capacity. Huckabee’s design delivers, fostering community-building identity and promoting the district’s educational vision.

The forest-themed library is the heart of the building. A cantilevered canopy guides students through the building’s glazed entrance and into this double-height space. Glulam columns that resemble trees, complete with acoustic panels for foliage, stretch from floor to ceiling. “Wolf dens”—perforated wood domes—provide students refuge at an observable distance. As in the gym, and on the learning wall that illustrates the phases of the moon, these Huckabee-designed nods to the school mascot cultivate an identity students can celebrate.

A variety of learning environments gives life to the district’s project-based vision for learning. All classrooms, from kindergarten to 5th grade, look onto collaboration space. Glazed focus rooms bookend classroom corridors. A maker space, separated from the library and a courtyard by foldable glass partitions, encourages hands-on learning. These spaces allow students to explore how they learn best, while still empowering teachers to keep watch. From form to floorplan, this community loves their new school.