Windwalls Enlighted Riverton High School

RIVERTON, Utah--July 4, 2000

An architectural approach that brings the outside in is helping to stimulate learning and healthy personal interaction at the new Riverton High School. Set near the mountains south of Salt Lake City, Riverton High School is one of three almost identical schools in the Jordan School District. Designed by MHTN Architects, of Salt Lake City, the schools were planned to provide a light, open setting where learning can take place in an uplifting atmosphere. One key to the successful melding of interior and exterior space is the use of interior windowalls that allow the natural lighting and views to permeate major areas of the building, including the library and administrative offices.

The school, one of eight high schools in the Jordan School District, encompasses more than 376,000 sq. ft. on a 51 acre site in Riverton, Utah. The new facility was designed to accommodate 2,500 students in grades 10 through 12 and opened for its first classes in September, 1999. Jordan High School, located a few miles north and east of Riverton High School, follows an almost identical design except for minor variations specific to its site, and both buildings were developed with the same design philosophy.

Windowalls Have the Inside Track

Bringing natural light into as many areas of the school as possible was a key design goal. Kyle Taft, AIA, vice president of MHTN Architects, who was project manager for the school, says, "We've found that many schools that were constructed in the 1960s or 1970s seemed to turn in on themselves and had a dark, cavernous feeling. Both our firm and the district felt that light and openness would be more conducive to a positive attitude on the part of the students and the faculty. The building was designed with academic wings that spread out like fingers, so we could get exterior light into as many classrooms as possible."

To carry this light throughout the building, aluminum windowalls were incorporated into the upper portions of several exterior walls. However, MHTN went a step further and added large windowall areas on interior walls to distribute this light to other parts of the building. Taft explains, "We wanted to capture some of this light in the media center and other interior spaces, so we used Steelcraft¨ frames with wire-reinforced glass to get the fire ratings we needed."

The same approach also enhanced the faculty lounge, which features a curved windowall that overlooks the media center, the more comprehensive name for what was once known as the school library. Says Taft, "The faculty room windows are on a rounded wall. You can look down into the library and also through the library windows to the outside. Not only is the faculty room an interior space, but the borrowed views that draw light to the inside also make a connection to the outside. You get the same effect from the administrative area. It creates a transparency in the rooms."

To accomplish this, the building uses Steelcraft's architectural stick system to create the interior windowalls, including the curved wall in the faculty lounge. This approach allowed Steelcraft distributor Beacon Metal, of Salt Lake City, to assemble the frames to the project's specifications using the pre-engineered fabricated components.

Metal Frames Enhance Door Durability

Adding to the durability of the building, the wood doors for classrooms, offices and other interior areas throughout the facility are set in Steelcraft F-16 frames that provide the strength and durability to help ensure their reliable operation.

Related applications include several pairs of 10 ft. high fire-rated Steelcraft doors, which are held open by electromagnets tied to the school's alarm system. LCN door closers are included, to close the doors automatically if the magnetic holders release due to fire. A teacher can also close the doors using a key switch that de-energizes the magnets to secure parts of the building for after-hours use. Von Duprin 98 Series exit devices provide safe emergency egress when the doors are closed.

MHTN Architects, Inc., founded in 1923, is an award-winning team of 113 professionals that provides comprehensive architectural services to major clients within the states of Arizona, California, Idaho, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. Its clients include commercial, university/ student union, healthcare, education and government-related entities. The contractor for Riverton High School was Union Point Construction, Salt Lake City, Utah.