In 2011, the Susquehanna River flooded Binghamton NY. The MacArthur Elementary School was inundated with contaminated flood waters and declared a total loss. This session will recount the inspiring process by which the city created a new school – a 125,000-square-foot, LEED platinum (pending) building with an EUI of 10 that embodies new models of educational engagement. Community discussions yielded five overarching vision statements which guided all decisions about site, building form, and materials. The design team used detailed energy and daylight modeling to create an energy budget and select high-performance systems for climate control, ventilation, and lighting. Commissioning, data collection, measurement and verification progress will show how the project is performing since its completion in late 2015.