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The Work Group recommends that the existing standards for specialized rooms <br />remain unchanged for traditional model schools. <br />i) Pre - School Area (Elementary Level) <br />NC Public Schools Facilities Guidelines recommend 1,200 to 1,400 square <br />feet for pre- kindergarten classrooms. Orange County Standards allow for <br />one classroom for pre- kindergarten children ages three and four at 1,700 <br />square feet. <br />ii) Special Needs Classrooms (All Levels) <br />Programs for exceptional children vary greatly, depending on age of children <br />and local factors. Additional support spaces may be necessary for <br />exceptional education purposes depending on the program. Specialized <br />spaces, such as cooking areas, toilets, bath /shower rooms, laundries, <br />observation rooms, and special equipment to accommodate certain <br />disabilities may be required. <br />iii) Remediation and Resource Labs (All Levels) — School plans should <br />include one or more small group classrooms for remediation, conferences, <br />guidance and testing for groups. Smaller group activities may require <br />additional smaller rooms. <br />iv) Instrumental and Vocal Classrooms (High School Level) — Student <br />participation for these programs is often high — it is not unusual for the <br />number of students in these classrooms to range between 40 and 80. <br />Orange County Standards provide for a range of 2,800 to 6,600 square feet <br />for these two classrooms (not including storage). <br />v) Dance Classroom (High School Level) — Dressing rooms and access to <br />showers for dance students are desirable in high schools. If located adjacent <br />to the gymnasium locker rooms, this space can be combined. Orange County <br />Standards for this function range from 1,800 to 2,000 square feet. <br />vi) Workforce Development (Middle and High School Levels) — Facilities for <br />high school workforce development programs are often large, extensively <br />equipped and more expensive than regular classrooms because of their <br />similarity to industry. Square footage included in Appendices 1B and 1C <br />parallels the State Guidelines. In accordance with State statutes, a basic high <br />school vocational education program must offer at least three of the workforce <br />development programs. Many high schools offer all seven programs <br />including agricultural, health occupations, business, family and consumer <br />sciences, marketing, technology, and trade and industrial. The number and <br />types of laboratories depend on local factors. More than one laboratory for a <br />program such as family and consumer sciences education may be necessary <br />in larger schools. Another factor to consider is the co -use of the darkroom of <br />a school. A larger- than - standard darkroom with additional storage could <br />1.1 <br />