the new chen family lower school

 

Meet the Chen Family

With their lead gift to the campaign, the family of Stanley and Allison Chen are investing in the construction of a new Lower School building that will bring all ISI students age 3 through grade 5 to the Michigan Rd. campus
 
The creation of the Chen Family Lower School Building is the centerpiece of the effort to build a unified ISI campus, a vision a quarter-century in the making.
 
 
 

project updates

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LIBRARY GLOBAL INSTALLATION COMPLETED

November 28, 2021
The built-in shelving and seating spelling out “global’ has been installed in the library. In the upcoming weeks, the rest of the shelving will be installed as well. 

UPSTAIRS HALLWAY FLOORING INSTALLED

November 20, 2021
Flooring is beginning to be installed in different areas of the building. First to be completed is the upstairs hallway to be used by Grade 3 through Grade 5 students. 

GLOBE MURAL COMPLETED

November 15, 2021
The globe mural on the outside of the Daneri Family Gymnasium is complete, an exciting addition to the outside of the building. 

BASKETBALL HOOPS INSTALLED

November 3, 2021
The Daneri Family Gymnasium is now outfitted for basketball, with hoops installed as well as a brand new scoreboard. 

CLASSROOM BUILT-INS INSTALLED

September 25, 2021
All classrooms have their own built-in storage, allowing for students to keep their jackets, backpacks, and other items in the classroom with them instead of the hallways. 

SIDEWALKS AND PARKING LOT FINISHED

September 13, 2021
Finishing touches on the parking lot, curbs, ramps and sidewalks have wrapped up, making the school ready and accessible to all visitors. 

ROOFING COMPLETE


July 29, 2021
With the installation of the shingles wrapped up, the roofing is now complete. With this benchmark complete, only a few steps remain before the exterior of the school is complete as a whole.

BRICK AND LIMESTONE INSTALLED


July 17, 2021
One of the most visible benchmarks was completed once the brick and limestone was fully installed around the building. After this, many of the upcoming projects will focus more on internal changes.

PARKING LOT COMPLETE


July 7, 2021
The base of the parking lot and curbs are complete. While it may not be an addiction to the actual building, it is an important part of the construction process that will be used by many.

COMPLETED EXTERIOR WALL FRAMING


May 16, 2021
Exterior wall framing has been completed, creating a stepping stone for future insulation and eventually brick and limestone installation.

COMPLETED INTERIOR CONCRETE SLABS


May 7, 2021
Now that the interior concrete slabs are finished, we can officially walk around on both stories of the building. Work on the second story can begin, which will house the upgraded library.

UNDERGROUND ELECTRIC AND PLUMBING COMPLETE


April 19, 2021
Two different types of roof decking were completed, for the flat roof over the Daneri Family Gym and for the sloped roofs over the two classroom wings.

ROOF DECKING COMPLETED


March 28, 2021
Two different types of roof decking were completed, for the flat roof over the Daneri Family Gym and for the sloped roofs over the two classroom wings.

STEEL STRUCTURE COMPLETED


March 22, 2021
Steel structure for both classroom wings were completed, giving us a glimpse of what the classrooms will eventually look like as construction progresses.

PRECAST WALLS SET


March 13, 2021
The precast concrete walls housing the multipurpose Lower School Daneri Family Gymnasium and the cafeteria were delivered and erected. 

STRUCTURAL STEEL ARRIVES


February 24, 2021
As the first batch of structural steel arrived, the Shiel Sexton crew worked to frame the classroom and administration sections, followed by the multipurpose Daneri Family Lower School Gymnasium and cafeteria. 

ELEVATOR SHAFT INSTALLED


January 29, 2021
Ahead of schedule, masonry crews began work on the 26-foot-tall elevator shaft in the center of the Chen Family Lower School. To work through cold temperatures, a heated tent was installed around the structure. 

FOUNDATION WORK BEGINS


January 19, 2021
Masonry crews began work on the perimeter foundation for the Daneri Family Lower School Gymnasium. The multipurpose gym is on the north end of the Chen Family Lower School.

SANITARY LINE WORK COMPLETE


December 4, 2020
New sanitary lines for the Chen Family Lower School were connected with existing ones. While not a glamorous step in the construction process, it is a crucial one. 

LAND PREPARATION CONTINUES


November 20, 2020
The Shiel Sexton crew has already put in 400 man-hours since the start of construction. They completed a Lime Stabilization Process, which reactivates the soil for long-term strength. 

LAND MOVERS READY SITE


November 10, 2020
Land movers and other heavy equipment clear the build site of growth to create a safer work environment for the start of construction.

SILT FENCE INSTALLATION


October 30, 2020
A silt fence was installed to mark the construction boundary, allowing the surrounding campus to be unaffected by the construction process.

GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY


October 23, 2020
ISI students, faculty, staff, alumni, and supporters gathered as #OneISI to virtually celebrate the groundbreaking of the new Chen Family Lower School. 

GROUNDBREAKING PREP


October 20, 2020
Construction crews began moving earth in preparation for groundbreaking activities.

PROPERTY MARKINGS


October 19, 2020
Crews marked the Chen Family Lower School property for the utilities prior to digging.

PERMIT ISSUED


September 24, 2020
The City of Indianapolis has released the Improvement Location Permit (ILP) for the construction of the Chen Family Lower School, which officially allows construction to begin.

FINAL RENDERINGS


February 28, 2020
Architects submitted final renders for the Chen Family Lower School, including views of classrooms, the library (shown above), gymnasium, and more. View the renderings slideshow.

SUSTAINABILITY PLAN


December 3, 2019
The architecture team put a 5 step sustainability plan in place, including the use of LED light fixtures and recycled materials, natural daylight in occupied spaces, and rain harvesting. 

INTERIOR PALETTE SELECTIONS


October 30, 2019 
The architecture team revealed early ideas for the palette and texture of the school interior, meant to bring in the character and warmth of the International School. 

TRAFFIC PLANNING FLYOVER


October 8-9, 2019
Architects captured drone footage of the Michigan Road campus to study traffic flows as they plan the circulation patterns for the Chen Family Lower School.

SITE SOIL TESTING COMPLETE


September 27, 2019
Crews completed soil testing on the site of the new Chen Family Lower School as an important first step in prepping for site construction.

ONE ISI CAMPAIGN LAUNCHES


September 17, 2019
The ISI community celebrated the launch of ONE ISI at the annual Wine and Cheese event.


PROject timeline

ONE ISI is a multi-year endeavor* that will create a unified campus by 2022. 

2019-2020 Academic Year - public launch of the ONE ISI campaign

2020-2021 Academic Year - Chen Family Lower School construction start

2021-2022 Academic Year - Construction and preview tours

August 2022 - Grand opening

*Timeline is subject to construction schedule