Lake Harriet Lower Elementary School

Overview

Lake Harriet Elementary Lower is a Community School built in 1924. Lake Harriet Elementary Lower does not have air conditioning in the building and does have its own kitchen. The building does have a Safe and Welcoming Entrance, as defined by Capital Planning, Construction, and Maintenance. The building is 63,646 square feet in size and has a design enrollment of approximately 509 students.

Between school years 2014 and 2023, Minneapolis Public Schools has invested $922,442 in capital expenditures for the building. In 2017, a facilities condition assessment classified the building as being in poor condition. The Operations Division will be conducting another facilities condition assessment in calendar year 2025.

Lake Harriet Elementary Lower had an enrollment of 309 students as of 01 October, 2024, with approximately 12.3% of those students qualifying for Free or Reduced-Price Lunch benefits. Note that families are still submitting Applications for Educational Benefits, so this proportion may change over the course of the school year. Total enrollment is approximately 61% of the building’s designed enrollment, making the current building use underutilized [‘underutilized’ is defined as enrollment totaling less than 70% of the design enrollment].

Building Use

At direction of the Board of Education, in October 2024 district staff performed a physical space study of all District schools. This included a walkthrough of the buildings that included many different stakeholders – Board directors, principals, teachers, central office staff, custodians, and others. The tables, figures, and plots below are a summary of data collected during the walkthrough of Lake Harriet Elementary Lower.

Classroom Spaces

See Table 1 below for how classrooms and labs are being used in the building.

Plan Use	Actual Use	N Rooms
Classroom	Americorps	1
Classroom	Classroom	15
Classroom	Conference Room	1
Classroom	Intervention Room	1
Classroom	Minneapolis Kids	2
Classroom	SEL Space / Calming Room	1
Classroom	Special Ed Resource Room	1
Lab - Art	Auditorium	1
Lab - Art	Lab - Art	1
Lab - Computer	Library	1
Lab - Computer	Storage	2

Table 1. Classroom and instructional spaces

Building Layout

The below figure[s] are building floorplans as annotated by building staff.

Figure 1. Floorplan for Lake Harriet Elementary Lower, floorplan pages 1 through 2

Guided Discussion

A guided discussion consisting of three questions was held with those who participated in the walkthrough. The major themes are included below, as are more detailed summaries of walkthrough participants’ answers.

Question 1: In what ways does the physical environment in this building best support learning?

Lake Harriet Lower offers various areas for breakout and independent learning in its building. There is a large art room with a kiln available for creative programming. Most classrooms provide ample room for both whole group and flexible learning without feeling cramped. There is an abundance of natural light, including skylights in some interior rooms. The building is 100-years-old with plenty of character, warmth, and charm. The surrounding green space, including a field, an outdoor classroom, a rain garden, and vegetable planters, supports imaginative play and learning. There are large kindergarten classrooms with attached bathrooms and cubbies, providing practical and creative learning environments. The school’s welcoming atmosphere contributes to staff retention and a strong sense of community. A dedicated sensory space helps students with self-regulation, while the innovative lunchroom fosters group dining skills in an aesthetically pleasing setting.

Question 2: In what way does the physical environment in this building interfere with how we would like learning to happen today and in the future?

Question 3: What should the district know or appreciate about the physical environment of this building?

Lake Harriet Lower is equipped with heating and air conditioning, ensuring a comfortable learning environment year-round and preventing school closures due to hot weather. Restroom accessibility within classrooms, particularly for younger students, minimizes disruptions and keeps them engaged in learning. The school also has a full kitchen, allowing meals to be prepared on-site, and most students look forward to the school lunch, contributing to a positive lunchtime experience.

Overall Discussion Themes

Natural light throughout the building via windows and skylights
Building has heating and air conditioning throughout
Large classrooms support flexible learning
Beautiful and diverse outdoor learning and play spaces
Needs a lift to improve accessibility

Survey Results

Fourteen questions were asked of walkthrough participants at the end of the walkthrough. There were 10 respondents to the survey at Lake Harriet Elementary Lower. The questions the participants were asked are included in Table 2 below, and the response breakdowns are included in Plot 1 below.

Question	Question Short	Question Text
1	welcoming main entry	The main entry is welcoming and able to be used by all students and visitors.
2	physical space design supports program	Generally, the design of the learning spaces in the building supports the way we teach and learn (e.g. classrooms are large enough to fit student desks, small group work space, etc.; there is storage for necessary curriculum, tools, manipulatives; all students can hear when the teacher is talking).
3	enough classrooms	The building has enough classrooms to support the number of students enrolled in the program.
4	entire student body can meet together	The school has a space large enough for the entire student body to be together.
5	adequate academic intervention space	The school has sufficient pull-out space to support instructional needs.
6	adequate regulation space	The school has sufficient pull-out space to respond to student behaviors.
7	adequate SPED space	There are sufficient spaces to meet the needs of the school’s Special Education programming.
8	mental health space	There are sufficient spaces to meet the mental health needs of students.
9	adequate lunch room	The cafeteria can accommodate the entire student body in three lunch services.
10	gyms large enough	The gyms are large enough to meet the needs of the program.
11	enough admin space	There is enough administrative space to meet the needs of the program.
12	functional outdoor space	The outdoor environment provides space for both learning and play.
13	adequate restrooms	The restrooms in the building meet the needs of the student body in terms of location, quantity, and inclusion.
14	building feels bright and welcoming	The building feels bright, welcoming, and efficient.

Table 2. Survey questions

Survey Question Results: Lake Harriet Lower Elementary

Plot 1. Survey results for Lake Harriet Elementary Lower

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