We are immensely proud to welcome the faculty, students and parents of the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study (JICS) at the University of Toronto (OISE), to their new school.

The new 27,000 square foot, three storey addition, connects the two old houses that previously accommodated the JICS. The new building features a multi-purpose gymnasium/auditorium with retractable seating, new classroom and amenity spaces for the Laboratory School, and study and lecture spaces for the Institute’s graduate program. Advanced teaching technology is incorporated into all classroom spaces.

The new entrance from Spadina Road is through a landscaped forecourt. Projecting out from the second floor over the entry, the new Lab School lunch/drama room presents a dramatic façade incorporating a deep bay window that can be “inhabited” inside by the children. The new entry lobby leads to a wood beamed hallway that looks out on one side into a linear woodland garden and on the other down into the gymnasium/auditorium below. Circulation is defined by colourful floor patterns, combined with a palette of oak millwork.

Established in 1925, the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study (JICS) was the first multidisciplinary institute at the University of Toronto. Its tripartite mission consists of three fully integrated components: a graduate teach education program, the Dr. R.G.N Laidlaw Research Centre, and the JICS Laboratory School (Nursery to Grade 6) for 200 students.

Learn more about the project here.