The IES 2024 Illumination Award of Merit-earning Agnew K-12 Campus in Santa Clara, CA, uses evolving color schemes, architectural structures, and lighting design to foster STEM learning as well as cross-grade mentorship and social development. While bright tones like yellow signify elementary-aged children, deeper tones such as blue and green support more sophisticated teen learners. To match the aesthetic and encourage comfortable educational areas, designers from LPA, Inc. selected high-CRI fixtures to provide indirect and vertical illumination for visual comfort, the shapes of which progress with the students’ ages. Round luminaires support the elementary space, while linear and more complex geometric shapes illuminate the middle and high schools. The design exceeds Title 24 compliance and meets the criteria for Collaborative High Performing Schools due to multi-zone lighting controls.
Recessed chevrons enhance a social gathering space for older students.
A cozy seating niche exemplifies the multi-layered, flexible lighting scheme, including individually controllable fixtures, glare-free pendants, adjustable wallwashers, and recessed linear luminaires.
Ceiling-mounted round luminaires enhance the bright yellow color-pop and architectural “floating” ceilings in the elementary school.
Playful curved fixtures decorate the hall that bridges the elementary school to the middle school, signaling a transition in age and academics.
Photos: Carl Hyndman – chyndman@lpadesignstudios.com
