Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District, Department of Defense Education Activity, Fort Knox students and teachers participated in a ribbon cutting ceremony for Van Voorhis Elementary School, Aug. 13, 2024, at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
The new $70 million, 104,000-square-foot school, which started construction December 2021, replaces the previous 84,000-square-foot facility that was built in 1958.
The original scheduled completion date of October 2024, planned for students to enter the new school in the 2025/2026 school year. By spring 2024, the increased progress of construction put the completion of the school ahead of schedule. USACE and the contractor pushed to finish the building a year earlier than originally scheduled to enable students to begin school this year.
“This is not just a new building; it’s a beacon of hope, learning and community for our children,” said U.S. Army Col. Bridget Dalziel, Aviation Branch chief, U.S. Army Human Resources Command. “We are not just unveiling new classrooms and playgrounds; we are opening the doors to endless possibilities, creativity and discovery to our young learners.”
The 21st Century DoDEA school, which incorporates learning hubs or instructional spaces grouped together in neighborhoods, uses central spaces for projects, breakout sessions and activities. The hubs have learning studios and classrooms paired for collaborative instruction and group learning with easy access to outdoor learning and play spaces. Smaller spaces have also been included in the design to foster individual instruction.
“I know it’s a huge project and the effort and dedication of everyone involved is truly amazing,” said Beth Schiavino-Narvaez, director, Department of Defense Education Activity. “This will be a place where students love learning and growing and where teachers will feel empowered to collaborate and learn and grow alongside their students.”
Challenges to construction were identified early in the project. Wet clay soil was identified at the location, which had a potential for long-term settling and possible negative impact to the foundation performance. The solution was to install 150 drilled concrete piers that extend to the bedrock between 30 feet and 50 feet below ground to support the load of the building.
As material costs increased and availability of construction materials became constrained, supplies were procured at the beginning of the project to keep construction moving forward and within budget. Storage of the additional materials became a challenge, which required the coordination with Fort Knox personnel to identify available locations to store the supplies.
Due to the recurring rain and cold winter temperatures, keeping the building dry became difficult. The USACE team and contractor brainstormed solutions that overcame these roadblocks and kept the project on schedule.
“The teamwork and collaboration demonstrated on this project is a true testament to the dedication of all parties involved who made this project a success story,” said Nick Bibelhauser, USACE Fort Knox resident engineer. “I am proud of the USACE team and contractor who worked through some late challenges to enable the official turnover of the school on July 31 enabling students to be in the building on the first day of school.”