Honoring History and Elevating Education: Transforming H.I. Holland Elementary School at Lisbon Campus

Having completed work at H.I. Holland Elementary School at Lisbon campus for the past three bond issues, KAI Design and KAI Engineering were again selected by Dallas ISD for the 2015 bond package work on campus. Originally constructed in 1937, the current facility is a three-story building that is an historically significant piece of architecture in the city.

The 2015 bond package identified deficiencies at H.I. Holland Elementary inclusive of the lack of a safety vestibule and an undersized kitchen. Through the community engagement process, it was determined that the existing portables that housed functional life skills (special education) and Pre-K 3-4 needed to be replaced with a permanent structure. The community also requested that the existing detached gymnasium be connected to the main building under contiguous conditioned space. The scope warranted multiple additions to the facility and with the current locations and adjacencies of the existing functions withing the building, three additions were identified. To the north, a single-story addition was created incorporating new administrative offices and security vestibule. To the south, a new kitchen was planned to meet the current design guidelines. At the west, a classroom addition was designed to serve multiple purposes. In addition to replacing the portables and connecting the gym, it also serves as a storm shelter and solves the vertical circulations challenges of the original facility.

Fronting major roads, Dallas ISD challenged the design team to provide additions that introduced color and excitement to the context of the historic structure. In response, the south and north additions incorporated solutions that respect the scale and modularity of the structure, drawing color inspiration from the original accent and secondary palette of the 1937 building. Together, these additions respectfully bookend the existing structure.

The west addition is organized both parallel and perpendicular to the facility’s two primary core‑curriculum wings, reinforcing existing campus geometry. To engage the existing building to the new classroom addition, the design team developed a transparent curtainwall connector to couple the new construction to the existing. To physically and visually connect the new classroom addition to the original building, the design team introduced a transparent curtainwall connector that seamlessly links new and existing construction. The classroom addition draws from the architecture of the original and subsequent classroom wings, incorporating punched window openings and exterior materials that align with the historic brick coursing and detailing.