Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) celebrated a significant milestone in the modernization of John F. Kennedy High School in Granada Hills, California. The school recently celebrated the grand opening of its new two-story classroom building and modern cafeteria, student store, music complex, administration, and shop building. The HMC design team joined our construction partners, elected officials, district leadership, faculty, staff, and students to celebrate phase two of a multi-phase, 37.4-acre modernization project.

John F. Kennedy High School serves 2,400 students and provides nationally recognized magnet and CTE programs in architecture, digital design, filmmaking, the teaching career academy, freshman academy, school for advanced studies, and gifted/high ability medical magnet.

The new 22,906 SF, two-story classroom building completes the southern edge of campus and incorporates 10 new classrooms for science, special education, childcare development, and general study. The placement along the edge of campus allowed for an outdoor classroom, ample space for the child development play area, and a dedicated drop-off and pick-up for that program. The school’s cafeteria, student store, music complex, auditorium, and shop building were renovated and reconfigured to give each of these programs room to grow and serve growing students’ needs.

HMC was tasked with proposing budget-conscious master planning scenarios that would respect the history of the campus, enhance the existing programmatic diversity, and encourage collaboration to maximize the learning experience. The goals of the project were to align the campus with current seismic codes and updates, provide the correct number of classroom buildings that meet California CDE Title Five and district requirements, and replace all portable classrooms with permanent buildings. Another key driver was to integrate adaptable and accessible special education spaces throughout campus to support inclusion. Approximately 14 percent of the student body has a special need, now students have access to every area of campus that their peers do. Students with diverse needs no longer need to be separated from classmates and now have a chance to build confidence, form more connections, and succeed.

The full project will be completed in October 2027.