Extension and Rehabilitation of Technical High Schools. Workshops for Vocational Education

Authors’ Comment

The diploma project is located in the city of Focșani, a medium-sized urban settlement currently experiencing a phase of stagnation but maintaining a strong identity rooted in local production and craftsmanship. The intervention site is situated in the South District, an area built in the 1970s to support the city’s industrial activities. Although much of the industrial activity has diminished over time, the city’s spirit as a marketplace and production hub persists, sustained by small workshops and local crafts still appreciated by the community. The project aims to transform a fragmented educational zone into a coherent vocational campus, bringing together three high schools—two technical and one sports-oriented—complemented by workshops, a canteen, dormitories, and sports facilities. The main intervention focuses on expanding the artisan workshops of Technical High School no. 4, addressing the current needs of practical education. The new spaces are designed as flexible and interconnected zones that can open up entirely to create a large experimental field for hands-on activities and outdoor exhibitions. A concrete structural shell protects these workshops, forming a multifunctional corridor with meeting, working, and exhibition areas. The project follows the principle of the “school as micro-city”, ensuring fluid connections between classrooms, shared spaces, and outdoor courtyards—a green courtyard and a working yard that allow activities to extend outside. The supporting interventions strengthen the entire ensemble: renovating abandoned dormitories, extending the sports area, and expanding the canteen with a multifunctional hall and recreational spaces. Additional technical workshops for woodworking and metalworking complement the educational program and maintain the city’s productive tradition. Overall, the project aims not only for the physical revitalisation of the site but also to strengthen an educational network capable of regenerating the community through relevant and adaptable professional training.