The new Ehrman Crest Elementary/Middle School in Cranberry Township was designed and built from scratch over a two-and-a-half-year period. The facility cost of $63 million. Cary Shaffer/Butler Eagle

Time Magazine has listed Ehrman Crest Elementary/Middle School as one of the best inventions of 2022.

The $63 million, kindergarten-through-sixth-grade school, which opened in August, features harmonic walls that educate about sound, fractions and energy; graphic walls with animals and numbers; and magnetic walls that let children study local environment.

The Y-shaped, 200,000-square-foot school was purposely built into the rolling terrain of the 150-acre grounds off Ehrman Road so classes on the second floor can go outside without going downstairs and so student views are of nature.

Sean McCarty, assistant superintendent of Seneca Valley School District, said every area of the school is meant to foster curiosity and learning among students, including a transparent interior wall where students can see the insulation, wiring and ductwork for heating and cooling.

“Our goal was to give kids the opportunity to discover and make learning fun,” he said.

Troy Hoggard, lead architect from CannonDesign, stands in the kindergarten common area at the new Ehrman Crest Elementary/Middle School in the Seneca Valley School District during a media tour of the new facility. Hoggard said the building and classrooms are designed to enhance "just-in-time" learning centers and student groups. Cary Shaffer/Butler Eagle