Manyara Ranch Primary School

The Manyara Ranch Primary School is a boarding school which educates over 900 students—many of them Maasai and over 600 of them boys. In 2007, the school relocated from inside to just outside of a 45,000-acre wildlife corridor that provides crucial passage and space for species to migrate and maintain healthy populations. While this relocation safely reduce conflict with the nearby wildlife, the infrastructure started to exhibit health and safety concerns due to poor implementation and siting the building over a major seismic fault line.

MASS assessed the existing site, buildings, and seismic conditions, and has proposed design solutions to solve these structural issues and improve the school and housing for students, teachers, and staff to a create healthier and safer place to live and learn. The landscape plan and campus masterplan are designed for erosion control and rainwater collection and re-use, with locally sourced stone, gravel, and on-site vegetation. Outdoor spaces were also improved to allow for more play areas for boys and girls of different age groups, as well as nature trails and educational signage to create opportunities for outdoor learning.