December, 2007
For more information, contact:
Barbara Rosston, Chair, Board of Trustees, Keys School
Tel. (650) 566-8622 e-mail Barb Rosston
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
KEYS SCHOOL PURCHASES PROPERTY FOR EXPANSION
Site Slated for Development of New Middle School
PALO ALTO, CA, December 10, 2007 – Keys School, an independent, accredited K-8 school, announced today that it has completed the purchase of land at 3981 El Camino Real in Palo Alto for the construction of a new middle school campus. Keys’ middle and lower schools are currently housed together at Keys’ Middlefield Road campus. Expanding to dual campuses will enable Keys to continue to provide an exemplary independent school education to current and future generations of students and allow more area families to experience the school’s child-centered learning environment. Keys’ new middle school campus is expected to open in August 2009 for the 2009-2010 school year.
“In order to preserve and improve upon the environment we’ve created at Keys, we recognized that we needed to expand on our current campus. Our plan calls for retaining our lower school on Middlefield Road and developing the new site for the middle school,” says Jon Ninnemann, Head of School, Keys School. “Increased space and improved facilities will enhance our ability to deliver our mission while allowing us to gradually expand into double sections and grow our student body.”
Starkweather Bondy Architecture and Vance Brown Builders have been selected to design and develop Keys’ new middle school campus. Both firms have extensive experience in public and private educational building projects across the Bay area. Construction is slated to begin next summer.
When it opens its doors in 2009, Keys’ middle school will house approximately 100 students from grades 5-8. Gradually, enrollment will increase until each grade has two classes of about 18 students each. Full enrollment is expected to reach about 150 students. Convenient transportation, including a nearby Caltrain station and Keys shuttle buses serving both campuses, will soon make Keys’ unique program offerings more accessible to families all over the Peninsula.
“With more physical space opened up through expansion and reasonable transportation options, we hope to offer another educational opportunity to more families on the Peninsula, both north and south, who are interested in our family-oriented, whole child philosophy and hands-on learning approach,” says Ninnemann.
Established in 1973, Keys School (2890 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto) offers a broad, hands-on curriculum that fosters high academic achievement and emphasizes balanced growth - intellectually, physically, emotionally, and socially - for every student. Within a diverse and supportive community, Keys is committed to maintaining a caring and creative environment that encourages children to take intellectual risks and to treat others with respect and empathy.
