Ribbon cutting at James Lawson High School

Today we celebrated the ribbon-cutting at the new James Lawson High School with Metro Nashville Public Schools! The new high school is located on “Lightning Lane” off Highway 70 South on the western side of Davidson County and boasts 310,000 square feet of classrooms and common space, including the cafeteria, gyms, theatre, and student Commons. The 274-acre site blends into the hills and includes athletic facilities for football, soccer, lacrosse, baseball, softball, and tennis. Lightning Lane is named after the school mascot – Lawson Lightning – and attributes to the mascot appear all around the campus.

“We wanted to design a building that would support programmatic requirements and provide students with an optimal learning environment that inspires and promotes individuality and creativity,” said David Bailey, a principal at HASTINGS Architecture. “The school actively engages with the site, the students, and the community in really unique and exciting ways.”

The design process involved close collaboration with MNPS to create a place that fosters critical thinking, inquiry, problem-solving, and creativity among the 1,600 students it serves. Multiple meetings with faculty, students, and community members ensured that the design of the school would become a hub for collaboration and community engagement.

The school design embraces sustainability as a design driver and is projected to achieve a LEED Gold certification through various initiatives. These include roof-mounted photovoltaic arrays, a high-efficiency geothermal mechanical system, natural daylighting, rainwater harvesting, green roofs, and outdoor classrooms that connect with nature.