Milwaukee Job Corps Center/ Milwaukee, WI

The Job Corps Center transforms 25 acres into an intimate campus that engages and motivates the 300 students that inhabit it day and night. It consists of eight buildings, totaling 155,000 square feet, each serving a specific purpose. Security is maintained at the welcome center, the administration building houses operational staff and a student clinic, while the student services building offers space for testing and counseling. The education building contains all classrooms and hands-on skilled trade learning labs. At the heart of the campus is a state-of-the-art dining hall. The night campus includes two dormitories, a gym, movie/game room, learning resource center, student store, and a recreation center with an arts-and-crafts studio. The result is an environment that promotes student interaction through diverse gathering spaces in a vibrant, safe atmosphere.

The dormitories together house 272 students (136 each dorm) and include large gathering areas, smaller lounges, RA rooms, a study room, storage, laundry, and toilet/bathing facilities. The floor plans are designed to give supervisors clear visibility of the hallways and room entrances to ensure safety of all residents yet provide a vibrant space for students to thrive.

Following the Job Corps’ dormitory guidelines, the typical room houses four beds, each with storage below and LED reading light. Each student also has a lockable closet. The restroom provides private toilet and bathing areas and an open area with two sinks and cabinets. For energy efficiency, low maintenance, and the comfort of the occupants, we incorporated in-floor radiant heating, a geothermal well field, rooftop systems, ERV, low-flow plumbing fixtures and high-efficiency hot water heaters.