Malcolm X Elementary is starting to look a lot less like a construction site and a lot more like a school again. In Ward 8, the long-awaited modernization is visibly closing in on the finish line, with the building’s structure and exterior enclosure largely wrapped up while crews pivot to interior finishes and site work. The refreshed campus is slated to deliver new and renovated classrooms, a full gymnasium, a flexible cafeteria that can handle both lunch and PE at the same time, outdoor play and learning spaces, and integrated public art, all across roughly 84,000 to 85,000 square feet. The Department of General Services has tapped Derek Riley among the project’s lead managers, and the design-build team of GCS-SIGAL and CGS Architects says the school remains on track to reopen for the 2026–2027 school year.
Construction Snapshot: What Is Done And What Is Still Coming
According to a January 2025 staff report from the National Capital Planning Commission, the project at 1500 Mississippi Avenue SE includes a roughly 20,000 square foot addition to the existing building, new multi-function spaces, and significant outdoor upgrades ranging from play areas to improved accessibility, per the National Capital Planning Commission. The same submission lays out an early 2027 completion target and notes that the design is intended to hit LEED Gold standards while achieving net-zero energy, with rooftop solar panels, a ground-mounted solar array, and below-grade geothermal wells doing the heavy lifting on the sustainability side.
Size, Schedule And The Design-Build Crew
Design-team briefings and public walk-throughs put the fully modernized school at about 84,716 square feet, with a west-side addition that houses a new gym and an expanded dining commons, as described during a site tour hosted by The District Architecture Center. Those materials also highlight the project’s net-zero performance goal. DCPS’s Facilities Planning page lists GCS-SIGAL as the design-builder and CGS Architects as the architect of record, and identifies Derek Riley as a DGS project manager overseeing the work, according to DCPS Facilities Planning.
Green Features, Public Art And A Boost For Mississippi Avenue
The NCPC staff report details a sustainability package that mixes rooftop and ground-mounted solar arrays with below-grade geothermal wells, plus a meadow-style planting plan aimed at supporting pollinators while helping with stormwater management, according to NCPC. The same documents, along with design-team materials, show an entry plaza, new seating, and integrated public art meant to knit the campus more closely to Oxon Run Park. In a social post on Facebook, the Department of General Services pitched the Malcolm X modernization as a first step in a broader wave of public investment along Mississippi Avenue.
What It Means For Students And Neighbors
While construction continues, DCPS has shifted Malcolm X students to swing space at the Davis site at 4430 H Street SE and lists the school as returning to its permanent home for the 2026–2027 school year, according to DCPS. DGS has also celebrated a “topping out” milestone as the steelwork wrapped up and the team moved into heavier interior work, per DGS. City officials say the community should expect more public materials and neighborhood meetings as the project approaches final inspections and turnover to DCPS later this year or in early 2027.
As interior finishes and site work progress, the Malcolm X Elementary modernization is poised to deliver more classroom space, high-performance green features, and long-requested community upgrades for Ward 8. Agencies and the design-build team say they will keep posting construction updates and meeting materials on the DCPS and DGS project pages as the work advances.
