High School STEAM Innovation Center

Challenge

Peekskill City School District envisioned a STEAM program that would inspire curiosity, encourage collaboration, and showcase student achievement. However, the program was housed in outdated classrooms tucked away on the lower level of the high school, where limited daylight, small windows, and an awkward floor plan made the spaces feel isolated and disconnected. The district sought to transform these underutilized classrooms into a vibrant learning environment that would bring together art, science, technology, engineering, and robotics while raising the visibility of STEAM throughout the school and the broader community.

Results

The new 11,500-square-foot STEAM Innovation Center transforms previously overlooked space into one of the most dynamic destinations in the school. Rather than fighting the building’s unusual wedge-shaped footprint, the design embraces it by organizing classrooms around a flexible central “Mixer”—a collaborative hub where students gather, exhibit their work, and share ideas across disciplines. Enlarged windows, interior glazing, and glass doors flood the center with daylight while making learning visible from surrounding spaces, generating excitement for the program and inviting curiosity. Flexible furnishings, write-on walls, breakout rooms, and dedicated robotics and fabrication spaces support project-based learning and allow students to move seamlessly between designing, building, testing, and presenting their ideas. The Innovation Center has become a catalyst for interdisciplinary learning, community engagement, and student pride, hosting public events, welcoming local organizations, and providing students with an inspiring environment that reflects the district’s commitment to innovation and opportunity.