Jim G. Martin Elementary School

Alamo Architects was select by Northside ISD to design its first “green school”.  While the district had a long history of building sturdy, energy efficient schools, the goal for Martin was to expand the district’s building philosophy to include a sustainable strategy for the school. The school is organized around an open courtyard that contains an amphitheater, kinder playground, and teaching garden. The  orientation of the classroom wing on an east/west axis gives access to natural daylight and views. The building was designed as a teaching tool to introduce concepts such as: energy efficiency, environmental stewardship and resource management to the students.  The school is LEED Silver Certified and preliminary data shows that it uses significantly less energy than similar schools within the district.