Mansueto High School

Five-and-a-half acres of an abandoned brownfield was transformed into a new school in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood. Mansueto High School serves students who are 98% minority and 91% low-income.

Thanks to New Market Tax Credits and financing from CNI, the new 67,000 square foot Mansueto High School, part of the Noble Network of Charter Schools, offers educational opportunities for students from under-resourced communities in a high-performing, effective and environmentally sustainable environment.

The two-story school wraps around a landscaped courtyard that emulates a college quadrangle. Walking paths, seating areas, and low-maintenance plantings create a pleasant outdoor environment for gathering, studying, and learning.

Designed by Wheeler Kearns Architects, the school uses several strategies to preserve natural resources and lessen its environmental impact, including a rainwater harvesting system that provides passive irrigation for the campus, and a repository for excess stormwater under the soccer field and parking areas. State-of-the-art mechanical systems and building materials also work to minimize its energy use.