Innovative Stagg High School Addition Earns Spot in Prestigious Exhibition

The Amos Alonzo Stagg High School Expansion Project has been selected for display at the 2025 Joint Annual Conference as part of the Exhibition of Educational Environments, a juried showcase of innovative school design. Stagg’s expansion will be evaluated alongside 24 other projects from across Illinois.

Sponsored by the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) Service Associates, the Exhibition highlights outstanding architectural work in public education. Projects recognized through this program include new construction and renovations for instructional, recreational, administrative, and other uses within Illinois school districts.

The Stagg expansion is entered in the Major Addition category. All submissions are reviewed on a blind basis by a jury of architects, school board members, and administrators.
Evaluation criteria include:

• Program and challenge
• How the facility meets 21st-century educational needs
• Design quality
• Energy efficiency and sustainable features
• Safety considerations

The IASB’s 2025 Educational Environments Exhibition selects projects with design solutions that best meet the needs of 21st-century educational environments and those that feature creative design solutions to unique programs or challenges.

Studio GC Architect and Stagg alumna Nikki Bridges said, “We at Studio GC felt that the Stagg Expansion perfectly represented the selection criteria. With a landlocked site, the classroom addition needed to be developed within the enclosed prairie grass courtyard. First, we maintained a portion of the courtyard as an outdoor learning space, which features a koi pond, native plants, and rainwater collection barrels. Second, the classroom addition rooftop was developed as an extension of the science classroom, complete with a greenhouse, green roof, planters, and room for future scientific learning pods. Studio GC designed a solution that not only meets the growing needs of the school but also enhances the students’ learning about science and the environment while promoting the well-being of all who visit the space.”

This recognition places the Stagg project among the state’s most forward-thinking educational environments, demonstrating a strong commitment to student learning and community needs.