The overarching goal of the Malvern Preparatory School comprehensive campus plan was to better align their landscape and facilities, maximizing use of a beautiful natural setting, with strategic changes in their curriculum. As part of this, the school identified STEAM as a major programmatic priority and sought a new center for collaborative pedagogy.

Brought in to perform a comprehensive campus plan, VMA was also tasked to design what would become the Center For Social Impact, the primary STEAM facility. The design of this and other projects in the plan was to reflect the Augustinian teaching and Catholic values at the heart of the institution.

For the Center, VMA sited an infill structure connected to the existing Science building. By doing so, this would meet the school’s goal to encourage students and faculty to cross departmental boundaries and foster co-curricular collaboration.  VMA worked with educational consultants Wonder by Design to balance these innovative programs with the  school’s preferred pedagogical approach.

In addition, the plan called for a new middle school building nestled between the Duffy Arts Center and the school’s dining hall, giving it room to have beautiful play areas around it. Other projects include a welcome center, alumni house, expansion of athletic facilities, including a hockey rink and two new turf fields, an environmental pavilion on the edge of the school’s pond, and walking/jogging trails. Parking was proposed around the perimeter of campus to create a pedestrian-friendly campus.