Academia Moderna Charter School

This project involved the full renovation of an existing two-story charter school in the Huntington Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Academia Moderna’s mission is to create life-long learning for students, and inspire them to be inquisitive, passionate, engaged, and independent. The school desired a transformation of their existing warehouse home to cultivate a “school” feeling within the industrial envelope. The project was designed specifically to make a more usable, functional, and lively space that would serve the students in pursuit of Academia Moderna’s mission.

To bring natural light deep within the building, hallways and classrooms alike benefit from the addition of well-placed skylights, reducing energy usage and promoting well-being. Throughout the project, the creative and strategic application of color and graphics creates a truly joyful learning environment for the elementary school students within. Completed on a tight budget, the Academia Moderna Charter School is an example of inspiring placemaking.