SAMi (Science and Math Institute) is a 30,000-square-foot public high school serving 450 students, seamlessly integrated into Point Defiance Park and emphasizing environmental harmony and experiential learning. Completed in 2019, the campus features a dispersed arrangement of modern structures that use transparency, natural daylighting, and strong indoor-outdoor connectivity. Flexible classrooms, laboratories, and field-study environments support hands-on, science-based education, while sustainable design strategies reinforce the school’s mission and deep connection to its natural surroundings.
Central to the campus is the Environmental Learning Center, a collaborative public asset developed through a partnership between Tacoma Public Schools and Metro Parks Tacoma. Located within the 700-acre Point Defiance Park—surrounded by Puget Sound and home to the Zoo, gardens, beaches, trails, and old-growth forest—the facility supports education, sustainability, and conservation. The joint-use building includes eight formal learning spaces for SAMi and community use, collaborative and interpretive gathering areas, workspaces for SAMi educators and Zoo staff, and environments for early learning programs focused on nature.
Since its founding in 2009, SAMi has fostered a strong learning community that actively engages with regional partners through citizen science, research, and interpretive programming, advancing both educational outcomes and the broader mission of the Park and Zoo. The project was delivered by a multidisciplinary team including McGranahanPBK, Forma Construction, PCS Structural Solutions, Coughlin Porter Lundeen, Hargis Engineers, Metrix Engineers, Cascade Design Collaborative, SSA Acoustics, and The Robinson Company.
