is critical to designing for learning in
the digital age.”
Epiphany Prep Charter School Before
Epiphany Prep Charter School After
Urban Discovery Academy
Urban Discovery Academy Classroom
KCM Group has been at the helm of education projects such as the Urban Discovery Academy
(UDA) in East Village, San Diego’s first downtown K-8 charter school. The construction of the
school, managed by KCM Group, included an innovative open-plan with fewer walls and the
addition of a rooftop playground that embraces the surrounding urban environment. The school
utilizes non-traditional classrooms with desks that fit together like fans, creating half-rounds to
encourage group work. Bright colors and modern furnishings contrast with the vaulted ceilings
and exposed brick from the original historic building to help encourage collaboration, creativity
and innovation among students and teachers.
“We want to prepare our learners for the jobs of tomorrow, which means completely rethinking
our classroom environment,” says Epiphany Prep CEO David Rivera. “To accomplish this, we
had to think: if we want our tables and chairs to move around for collaboration, where do we
put the electrical outlets? What will the lighting look like? It was all new territory for us, but it
From his time working with UDA,
KCM Group Principal Gordon Kovtun
continues to focus on flexible, open
plans that foster a collaborative
approach to teaching. Now at
Epiphany Prep, Kovtun is working with
the school’s administrators to replace
walls with collapsible glass panels,
which will help provide opportunities
for students and teachers to
collaborate in ways that mimic modern
professional work environments.
“Our work with Epiphany Prep
is consistent with the future of
classroom design, whether in
the private and charter school
environments or renovations of
existing public schools,” Kovtun
shared with Giving Back Magazine.
“We have done complete design-
build projects like the Urban
Discovery Academy and the new
Kipp Adelante Preparatory Academy,
which will start construction soon, to
renovations for existing buildings like
Epiphany. Each project is unique as
some can require management of
bond funding, design management
and construction management, and
may combine with the renovation.
But, each aims to inject a modern,
architecturally unique mark on the
neighborhood the school serves.”
As technologies continue to change
the spaces where we live and
work, forward-thinking minds with
Epiphany Prep and KCM Group are
paving the way for other academic
institutions to rethink where and how
we learn. As a local business owner
with an interest in the city’s future
local talent and economy, Kovtun
knows education is the catalyst.
www.kcmgroup.net
NOVEMBER 2018 | GBSAN.COM 67