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The new elementary school in Leonardtown will be modeled after Evergreen Elementary School in Wildewood. The St. Mary’s County Board of Education on Tuesday approved the educational specifications for the new school on the Hayden Farm property on MD 245 in Leonardtown that will use the Evergreen E.S. plan as its prototype.

School Superintendent Dr. Michael Martirano said the Evergreen plan would be tweaked to make some improvements. He said of using the plan, “That saves us money at a very basic level.” Larry Hartwick, the school system’s supervisor of design and construction, added it would also save time in the construction schedule.

The plan was hammered out by a committee that included Jillian Storms from the Maryland State Department of Education. It also included Evergreen Principal Kim Summers, who gave guidance on the things that work and don’t work at her school. A representative of the architect firm that designed Evergreen, TCA Architects, also advised the committee.

According to Hartwick, the following changes to the Evergreen design have been incorporated into the education specifications:

·Integration of instructional technology into the design requirements,

·Safety and security enhancements,

·Opportunities for renewable energy technologies,

·Wellness education displays for the cafeteria,

·Use of facility for public groups,

·Anticipated periods of enrollment in excess of rated capacities, and

·Improved acoustical qualities.

Since Evergreen has been overcrowded almost since the day it opened, the design allows for temporary expansion of the new school.

Of the technology changes, Martirano said, “The technology improvements haven’t changed a lot in the intervening time.” Board member Cathy Allen said she was pleased that there were some changes. She predicted that the new elementary school would be the last designed with computer labs, since in the future each student will have a laptop or tablet.

The recent renovation to Leonardtown Middle School also made some changes to computer labs to allow flexibility in the future, Martirano said.

Hartwick said the exact amount of savings using the prototype will not be known until the actual design bids are received. The educational specifications will now go to the state for approval. “We have a very good set of drawings,” Hartwick said.

The new Leonardtown elementary school will go on a campus that will also include an early education center and a middle school eventually. It will also include a county park to the rear. The county has removed a new library from the site plan.

The school board at Wednesday meeting approved a subdivision proposal that gives the school board enough land to do their portion of the project. The eventual school system ownership of the subdivided property is required for the state to approve their funding for the new schools.