For Monterey Bay Charter School the 8 year dream to consolidate their two locations into one K-8 campus became a reality when they discovered the needs of CSU Monterey. For years the university has struggled to recruit staff  due to the lack of K-8 education in the area, so the decision to lease 18 acres of university land to the charter school was a welcome and mutually beneficial arrangement. With land in hand, Monterey Bay Charter School selected NMR + Otto team to design and build a new school inspired by the Waldorf pedagogy.

The pedagogy is based on the childhood development philosophies of Austrian sociologist and architect Rudolf Steiner. Steiner’s Waldorf educational philosophy will significantly influence the design of the Monterey campus. The philosophy’s focus on connection with the natural environment, music, art, dance, socialization and the qualitative analysis will be facilitated by larger classrooms that accommodate experiential learning like demonstration kitchens, woodworking and specialty handwork areas, adjacent vegetable gardens and the inclusion of outdoor elements onsite.

The phased project will create a K-8 campus that accommodates 500 students and will be followed by additional specialty classrooms, a multipurpose facility and community center. The project be designed to LEED’s silver standards and will employ sustainable design and water conservation through low irrigation landscaping, and 100% capture, treatment and retention of storm water. NMR is honored to partner with the Monterey Bay Charter School to create a forward-thinking, innovative and sustainable campus that will benefit the Monterey Bay community.