The Montessori School of Englewood

Depave Chicago and The Montessori School of Englewood (TMSOE) are working together to undertake a 10,000SF depave project on TMSOE’s South Side campus. TMSOE, a non-profit charter school of 350 K-8th grade students, teaches the Montessori method of child-centered education and hands-on learning, with a focus on empowerment and creating the next generation of leaders in Chicago and beyond. With a focus on environmental justice and climate adaptation, TMSOE has long desired to remove the asphalt to transform the site into a living, environmental education, and community gathering space. In Spring 2023, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders along with their teachers, parents, and board members collaborated with Depave Chicago to develop a Vision Plan for the green schoolyard. The design includes butterfly and pollinator gardens, an outdoor classroom, an art-making space, nature-play areas with low-berms and log structures, a remembrance garden, a rainwater celebration and bio-infiltration feature, and lots of shade trees. Now with that design in hand, our team is working with CPS, Indigo Ecological Design, and Geosyntec to bring that vision into reality. We can’t wait to tear up the asphalt.

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