Cherokee Lane Elementary School – LEED Silver
Improving the whole campus
Cherokee Lane Elementary School had reached the end of its useful life, but Prince George’s County Public Schools saw an opportunity to rethink the entire campus.
Rather than simply rebuilding on the original 1962 site—which will now host a new high school and CTE hub—the district partnered with our team to design a modern, LEED Silver-certified replacement school in Adelphi, Maryland.
Relocating the school adjacent to Buck Lodge Middle School solved major capacity needs while maximizing shared campus infrastructure. Here is how design and construction innovation delivered a future-ready space for 846 students.
Smart site layout + shared infrastructure
Co-locating the elementary and middle schools allowed the design team to overhaul vehicular flow and campus amenities:
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Separated Traffic: Dedicated entrances off Buck Lodge Road split bus traffic from parent drop-off loops, eliminating surrounding street congestion.
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Shared Parking & Fields: Reconfigured circulation created ample shared parking between both facilities, along with a new softball field and a multi-use athletic field.
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Environmental Restoration: Integrated stormwater management systems and an on-site stream restoration project protect local ecology and serve as outdoor learning tools.
Neighborhood-style learning houses
Inside, the two-story layout scales down the facility so young students feel at home:
- Centralized Public Hub: The gym, cafetorium, and library anchor the main entrance for easy after-hours community use, with music rooms positioned directly behind the stage for seamless performances.
- Grade-Level Clusters: Classrooms group into distinct “houses” centered around shared support spaces and restrooms, fostering a small-community feel.
- Vertical Organization: Early childhood grades (K–2) occupy the ground floor for direct exterior access, while grades 3–5 use the second level.
- Layered Security: Each classroom house locks down independently from main corridors and public zones.
A faster build through permanent off-site construction
To meet aggressive district timelines, our team utilized a hybrid modular build approach. Workers built roughly 67% of the school off-site in a climate-controlled facility while site crews poured foundations and framed the gym, cafeteria, and kitchen.
Factory construction allowed trades to work simultaneously under strict quality control. The same specialized contractors who assembled the modules off-site managed the on-site installation, ensuring perfect material compatibility.
The result: workers set the entire modular portion of the building in just 21 days. This time-lapse video documents the on-site installation.
Watch this video interview with one of our architects at the Cherokee Lane Elementary School construction site to learn more about the collaboration involved in permanent off-site construction.
