Board hears design for downtown K–6 campus centered on historic Old High

Marble Fairbanks presented a concept design for a combined K–6 downtown campus that preserves the historic Old High building and frames the new addition as a community‑facing school.

The firm told the Bentonville School District board the design centers classrooms around terraced courtyards to connect indoor learning with outdoor spaces and places the historic Old High as an "arts pavilion" serving both school and public events. "Old High is maintained but reimagined as an arts pavilion," the presenters said during the meeting.

The design emphasizes hands‑on learning, student access to nature and use of locally sourced, neutral materials. Renderings shown to the board include a dining commons with a culinary test kitchen sited next to a mature tree grove, a double‑height learning lab near the main entry and outdoor reading terraces. The architects said the scheme would serve roughly 1,300 students and allow visibility and circulation between grade clusters.

Board members asked about the community forum and parking. Architects said a community meeting at the Bentonville Library drew residents, current and prospective parents and that reaction was mostly positive; some residents initially feared Old High would be demolished but were reassured when presenters described its preservation. On parking, the team said the site plan includes about 200 spaces in a main lot, an additional 65 spaces around a car drop and capacity for about 20 buses, with separate car and bus flows to limit conflicts.

The presenters said the project started with guiding‑principle work sessions in January, proceeded through pre‑design and concept phases, and is now in a review window after forwarding a report to the board last Friday. They expect to synthesize community feedback and finalize the design in October.

The presentation was informational; no action was requested. Board members were invited to continue providing feedback during the review period.