The heart of BNIM’s competition entry for the Kasson-Mantorville Educational campus is the “Community Green” that lies between the high school and middle school. This arcaded and tree-lined space will host outdoor ceremonies and events such as concerts, meetings and graduation ceremonies, as well as being an informal gathering space for students and the community. The new High School is organized around a courtyard or “cloister” that is the internal focus of the school. A classroom wing defines the southern edge, the east is defined by the laboratories and art studios, the north by the gymnasium and the west by the commons and main entry. The theater and music rooms are aligned with the gymnasium and act as the “head” of the “Community Green.” An east/west circulation spine connects the theater, gymnasium and community center so they may be separated for after hours use.

Kasson, Minnesota
173,530 square feet

The Kasson-Mantorville High School is a high performance high school and pedestrian oriented educational campus that maximizes daylight and develops energy conservation and optimizes life cycle cost.

The goal of BNIM’s proposal was to create a sense of place, community and order for the Kasson-Mantorville Educational Campus and its larger context. In the tradition of American campus planning, BNIM saw the scale of space and landscape elements as the unifier of the campus. BNIM therefore, proposed a series of appropriately scaled outdoor campus spaces that supported the educational and community mission of the three schools and were linked to the broader community and planned open space system.