Dist. 95 parents to get first look at new May Whitney Elementary plans

Flexible learning spaces, rooms for small groups and a lot more natural light are some of the features planned for the new May Whitney Elementary School building in Lake Zurich.

The Lake Zurich School District 95 community will get a first look at the plans at an information session hosted by the district staff at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 14, at the Sfire Family Education Center, 832 S. Rand Road, in Lake Zurich.

The event will feature a 3-D virtual tour of the design as well as presentations about the building's learning spaces and security features.

"It's kind of a celebration of where we are in the process thanks to all the info we've gotten from stakeholders," Superintendent Kaine Osburn said.

The plan has been in the works since voters overwhelmingly approved a $77.6 million bond issue to improve district facilities in March 2018. Osburn said a group of teachers and parents worked closely with the school's architect to make sure the design included the desired features.

Throughout the process, the group spoke with May Whitney faculty and parents as well.

"It's been a process of input and revision," Osburn said. "We've been very excited about it."

The resulting plan is quite different from the current May Whitney building, parts of which were built about 100 years ago.

The plan calls for several modern learning spaces, called hubs, in hallways outside the classrooms. Osburn said one hub will be like a mini amphitheater with tiered seating; another will be smaller and have modular furniture.

He said one hub will be large enough to accommodate an entire grade level.

In addition, there will be a breakout room between every two classrooms designed for six to 10 students to work on group assignments, Osburn said.

The price tag for the new building was most recently estimated at $42.3 million. Osburn said officials will put out a request for contractor bids in the spring.