St. Andrew’s School Amos Hall Renovation Wins Groundbreaker Award

January 11, 2022

The Sheward Partnership is proud to announce that the St. Andrew’s School Amos Hall Renovation project was awarded a Groundbreaker Award by Green Building United. TSP served as the LEED & Sustainability Consultant on the project, guiding the team to achieve LEED certification under the LEED v4 for Schools Rating System.

Leadership, Innovation, and Commitment to Sustainability in the Built Environment

St. Andrew’s School, located in Middletown, Delaware was founded in 1929 on a commitment to the highest standards of education, community involvement, and the preservation of our planet. The school honors this commitment by what they teach and by how the students and faculty live in community and harmony with the natural world. In their steadfast commitment to sustainability, St. Andrew’s School made LEED certification a priority for the major renovation of Amos Hall, the science and mathematics building.
Amos Hall is a two-story, 29,000 square foot building with a partial basement that underwent extensive renovations. New lighting, HVAC delivery and controls, plumbing systems and finishes were provided throughout the majority of the building including lab and classroom spaces that comprise a completely new interior architecture outfitting the building. The building achieved LEED certification under the LEED v4 Building Design and Construction: Schools Rating System.
In order to achieve this goal, the project team integrated building performance strategies into the overall design of the building. Through use of high quality wall and spray insulation, even with the reuse of the existing structure, the new building out performed energy code. According to energy models, Amos Hall is over 12.6% more energy efficient than baseline ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2010. LED lighting and new HVAC equipment lower annual energy use.
An important concept of the Amos Hall Building was reusing the existing structural materials as a shell for the new academic building. According to calculations, the project team salvaged and reused over 50% of existing materials in the building. This strategy greatly reduces the requirement for new materials and lowers the embodied carbon of the project. Embodied carbon is a measurement of the impact the material has on the environment.
The project team specified native vegetation around the building, ensuring through their resiliency, that less water would be used for upkeep. As a result, no irrigation system was installed which minimized outdoor water use. Indoor, the team selected water efficient, WaterSense labeled fixtures to reduce water usage during occupancy. The fixtures are estimated to use about 37.18% less water compared to a baseline set by the EPA, reducing the impact on the local water systems and the environment.

Environmental, Economic, & Social Impact

St. Andrew’s School is a unique institution with a sprawling landscape and campus that includes residences for all students and most faculty. This project directly impacts the lives of those who daily live, work and play in and around this facility. While keeping the history of the campus at the forefront, the project team strived to push the boundary with a beautiful and elegant learning facility. State of the art science classrooms provide ample areas for students to learn and outdoor environments allow students and faculty alike to enjoy the natural surroundings. These outdoor areas also can be utilized by faculty who live on campus, further growing the bond and connection in the school.  

St. Andrew’s commitment to healthy environments for their students sets an example for Delaware schools and beyond. As one of the first LEED certified school buildings in the state, Amos Hall is a tangible standard of the commitment they make to their students and to their community. While the primary focus of the building is to provide an engaging and safe classroom experience, the space also lends itself to outside community members which the school is partnered with. This connection gives St. Andrews one avenue in which they can give back to fulfill their civic duty and share the St. Andrew’s spirit.

In the efforts to achieve LEED certification, the project reused a significant amount of the existing Amos Hall core and shell. This was a priority as many faculty members and alumni have fond memories of their time in Amos Hall. Amos Hall shows that there is a solution in upgrading outdated learning facilities while keeping and embracing the important history of the building. This blend is certainly challenging, but can be a shining example to other schools that have years of memories embedded in building foundations, yet require crucial updates to remain safe and an efficient for years to come.

Project Team

Owner: St. Andrew’s School

Owner’s Representative: The McGee Company

Architect: Zimmerman Studio, LLC

MEP Engineer: Entech Engineering

Contractor: Nowland Associates, Inc.

Sustainability Consultant: The Sheward Partnership, LLC

Structural Engineer: Keast & Hood Company

Landscape Architect: Ground Reconsidered

Technology Consultant: KMK Technologies

Cost Estimator: International Consultants, Inc.