McDowell Adult Education Center (formerly known as the Mabel McDowell Elementary School), Columbus, Indiana, was designed by John Carl Warnecke, in 1960; which was an important landmark of his career. McDowell Adult Education Center is a perfect example of Columbus’ earlier modern art and it is designated as the Historical National Landmark by National Park Service in 2002.
The building is located at 2700 McKinley Avenue and was an elementary school till 1982, which was later converted to an adult education center. The clusters of 4 pagoda type classrooms with a group of buildings and open spaces gives doze off nostalgia to the visitor. Every building’s window is shaded by Shingled roof and has a facility of rest room and storage area. The architecture concentrated on school grouping with a controlled environment standing outward towards the community. The designer used brick and steel frames in the construction of 4 corner building with 3 classrooms each, adjacent to nucleus building surrounded by patio area and walkways. The horizontal, flat terrain land of southern Indiana, which was earlier covered by grooves of trees, provide flexible climate to the environment.
Some of the Education Programs funded by the Indiana Department of Education, at this center are:
• Nurse Aide Training Programs of Indiana
• Local Adult Education Programs
• GED Testing
• Other Adult Education Programs by Comprehensive Program District
