The Capitol Regional Educational Council (CREC) sought to renovate a former CL&P office building to provide a new home for the Discovery Academy, a new PK-5th Grade magnet school that had been operating in temporary quarters. The school’s magnet themes are STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), Arts and Literacy, with a focus on hands-on, project based learning. School Administrators and Teachers voiced the need for a bright, inviting and playful building which inspires creativity and projects a theme-inspired “wow factor” upon entry. Amenta Emma designers salvaged 48,000 sf of an existing building and created a 19,000 sf addition to accommodate learning spaces, labs, and a multipurpose gymnasium/theater/cafeteria. The facility takes full advantage of natural light and emphasizes indoor-outdoor connections, aligned with the school’s STEM theme.