A home for scientific discovery across divisions
By Jack Phillips, Head of Upper School and Melinda Martin, Interim Head of Middle School
Shrieks of, “I want to see the axolotl!” echoed down the hall as curious fourth graders peeked into The Hive for the first time this spring. “We’ll get to have our science classes here?” they asked excitedly.
Peering into the new classrooms, they watched Middle Schoolers lean over microscopes, discovering new details through each lens. With its intentional design, The Hive makes scientific tools accessible to the youngest Middle Schoolers while also supporting the most advanced Upper School scientists, fostering inquisitive, discerning and critical minds.
Whether it’s seventh graders pooling data for a genetics investigation on taste perception or summer campers immersed in programming from the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Tower Hill now has a shared space for students to chart their inquiries and develop their passions. The Hive’s flexible layout—with movable tables and reconfigurable workspaces—invites collaboration, creativity and student-driven decision making.
“This arrangement encourages teamwork and creativity throughout the learning experience,” said Middle School science teacher Lara Kossiakoff. “Using the new science space, we can collaborate, experiment and bring science to life in ways that help students think like real scientists and engineers.”
The Hive also brings our schoolhouse together. This summer, Middle School science teachers Mary Taylor, Luisa Sawyer and Kathleen McMillen worked in tandem to extend The Hive experience to Lower School students through hands-on summer programming. With support from Middle School volunteers, younger students built cross-divisional relationships while exploring and problem solving together.
The Hive’s single floor layout serves as a true bridge between divisions—blending Middle and Upper School science learning in one dynamic environment. For Upper School students, The Hive is already abuzz with activity. One classroom is home to a thriving computer science program led by Bill Soistmann, where students in courses like Introduction to Computer Science, Game Design, and Algorithms and Data Structures, code side by side—sharing ideas, debugging problems and learning collaboratively in a space that mirrors real world innovation hubs. Another classroom acts as a blank canvas for our Upper School robotics team, with fabrication tools, workbenches and room to prototype and refine ideas. In a third space, ninth grade biologists—under the guidance of Stashauna Carter—seamlessly transition between lab and discussion, laying a strong foundation for scientific thinking in their very first year of Upper School.
As we live in the space, we’re already generating ideas about how to maximize its potential and make the most of its transparent glass walls, collaborative layout and adaptable design. Now that we have a dedicated robotics room, we’re asking: what’s next? Can we be even more ambitious and explore forming a FIRST Robotics Competition team, entering the national arena with larger, more sophisticated robots and engineering challenges? Aligned with the strategic plan’s goal of expanding opportunities for student-generated research and scholarship, we’re also imagining how The Hive might house long-term investigations in genetics, human health or environmental science.
Science teachers across divisions have visions for the future and are already posing questions about what might lie ahead in the coming years. We are committed to thoughtful consideration of how we can continue to use The Hive to engage our students, bring science to life and use the pursuit of science as another way to build bridges between students and across the school.
