Isaac Beaulieu Memorial School
Formerly Sandy Bay School
Sandy Bay Ojibway First Nation, Manitoba
A 5,200 sq.m. (56,000 sq.ft.) 30 classroom facility to accommodate 650 K-12 students, including industrial arts, home economics, music, business education, handicrafts and gymnasium facilities, as well as upgrading of the community water system and installation of a water treatment plant. Close consultation with the Sandy Bay Education Committee and the community resulted in numerous unique features such as: Use of circular forms, particularly at entrances, to reflect Native symbolism and to “soften” the building; A drum-shaped main entrance facing the rising sun and contained a teepee-like structure overhead and an artifacts display at eye level; An outdoor theatre with terraced seating; A large bounce wall with a colourful graphic by a native artist; A large Multi-Purpose/Cafeteria area that can be used as a stage for the Gymnasium; An unprogrammed 930 sq.m. (10,000 sq.ft.) basement area that was later converted to classrooms.
A 1,672 sq.m. (18,000 sq.ft.) addition and renovations to the existing K-12 Sandy Bay school, including new industrial arts, computer labs and renovated home economics and biology. The project was completed in 2000 at a cost of $4,300,000.