Durham Community School is a Pre K-8 school based in the town of Durham, Maine. The building was opened in 2010 and replaced the old Durham Elementary School. The school is a state of the art facility with an emphasis on energy efficiency and sustainability. Heating and cooling is provided by a geo-thermal system, domestic hot water is supplemented by solar panels and natural light harvesting is predominant throughout the building using light shelves and a variety of sensor technologies.
The commitment to science and technology is also continued in the classrooms. The school has collaborated with the Maine Math and Science Alliance to create a comprehensive inquiry based science program that results in students being knowledgeable and enthused about the natural and man made world they live in. Technology is used to support learning with audio enhanced classrooms, interactive white boards and MLTI supported one to one computing in the upper grades.
A wide range of classes in the visual and performing arts including music, art, STEM and public speaking are supported. Co-curricular offerings also exist in the form of interscholastic and intramural sports, as well as clubs covering such diverse interests as yearbook, computers, adventures and writing.
The school name reflects the strong community support it receives as well as the culture of the learning environment. In a Pre K-8 school there are opportunities to connect learners of different ages and interests and this happens on a daily basis from bus buddies, to reading buddies to mentoring between older and younger students. The emphasis is truly upon a dynamic community of learners.
Over the last half a century Durham has seen a transition from one room school houses to a 21st century school and yet throughout that time it has always retained it's focus on children and the need for them to be at the heart of the learning process.
Watch an aerial video of the school
