Everett Meredith Middle School
Building
Building
a new era in Delaware education.
In 2016, the Appoquinimink School District (ASD) marked a new era in Delaware education as they took the opportunity to rethink the future of academic facilities as they expanded to meet the needs of their growing student population. Selected as the district’s construction partner, EDiS Company teamed with ASD to build five new schools over six years: Lorewood Grove Elementary School; Odessa High School and Cantwell’s Bridge Middle School; Silver Lake Elementary School; and finally, Everett Meredith Middle School (EMMS) in the heart of Middletown, DE.
The Everett Meredith vision statement is “empowering each student to thrive intellectually, physically, and socially.” What better way to achieve and celebrate that goal than a new 79,000 SF, state-of-the-art middle school for them to thrive in? In the midst of COVID 2020, EMMS students and staff were also temporarily relocated to schools around the district during the rebuilding of the EMMS campus, which first opened in 1929.
Building
a space for collaboration and learning.
The new school encourages interaction, collaboration, and belonging, with a learning stair in the cafeteria emblazoned with the school’s pillars of learning, a place where students can hang out, connect with friends, or find a moment of respite.
Other new additions include a library media center, rehearsal rooms for band, chorus, and orchestra, an arts wing with an art room, a STEM workspace, and an agriculture classroom. A unique and meaningful statement piece can be found across the lunchroom in the preserved historical hallway by the new 500 + seat auditorium – an Everett Theatre sign from Middletown’s 100-year-old theater a few blocks away on Main Street.
Building
a legacy that lasts.
It’s a running theme in the new school – celebrating the history and past while educating for the future. An EMMS history wall* was placed in the hallway outside the gymnasium. It holds bricks engraved with names, brief inscriptions, and dates belonging to former members of the EMMS community. Next to the wall are preserved pieces of the original building, including heart pinewood flooring, the 1929 datestone from the school’s opening year when it was formerly known as Middletown School, and the cast stone window surround.
Building
with Building Information Modeling (BIM) Services.
Through a very coordinated and collaborative preconstruction phase and bidding strategy, the project came in under budget. This includes the use of EDiS’ Building Information Modeling (BIM) Services division, who used 3-D modeling technology, drones, and laser scanners to ensure the building was designed virtually and adjusted properly before shovels ever hit the ground. This allowed the District to transfer $5.3 million to other projects, which included a new synthetic turf field with site lighting at the Fairview Campus and a larger gymnasium at Silver Lake Elementary School.
4%
4%
Industry average change orders percentage
1%
1%
EMMS design related change order percentage
Building
a school worth celebrating.
With this final piece of the 2016 Referendum complete, EDiS and Appoquinimink have left their mark for generations of students who will come and go from the halls of EMMS. We celebrate as a team the completion of such an impactful school, and hope the students and staff of EMMS have many more things to celebrate in their brand new school for years to come.
1 of 20 Front Exterior
Civil Engineer
Landmark Science & Engineering
Structural Engineer
DCI+MacIntosh Engineering
MEP Engineer
Furlow Associates
Geotech Engineer
Verdantas
