The deterioration of public school buildings is more prevalent in large cities that, because of funding shortfalls, have deferred maintenance and require huge sums to bring their buildings up to acceptable standards. Cities such as New York will require approximately $680 million to address the problem of deferred maintenance for needed painting,…

Describes the educational benefits of high-performance schools, buildings that are efficient, healthy, safe, and easy to operate and maintain. Also briefly describes how to create a high-performance school drawn from volume I (Planning) of the three-volume Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) "Best Practices Manual." (For more…

Describes cooperative effort between Association of School Business Officials, International and National Forum on Education Statistics to develop a guide to facilities maintenance planning, to be completed in 2 years, for use by local school districts. (PKP)

Network analysis models provide administrators with an opportunity to describe analytically an orderly process for planning, organizing, directing, and controlling personnel and resources needed for the accomplishment of objectives. (Author/MLF)

Planning new construction is an opportunity to recognize indoor environmental quality (IEQ) issues. Provides an overview of some common IEQ issues associated with construction projects. A building's heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system is by far the single most common cause of IEQ problems and complaints. (MLF)

As the leaders of the construction team, owners should (1) become knowledgeable about the construction industry, or hire someone who has that knowledge; (2) use familiar, tested, and fair contract forms; and (3) hire the most competent architects and engineers, and pay them fairly. (MLF)

In the future, administrators will devote more time to master planning for their districts' facility needs. More attention will be given to form, shape, surfaces, size, and materials. This article outlines internal assessment questions to be asked by planners, discusses common facility design complaints, and recommends using a facility assessment…

Describes 12 current trends in education that may have a significant impact on long-range plans for school construction and remodeling. Offers suggestions to help ensure that facilities plans accommodate these trends. (PKP)

Describes how one school district saved money, simplified carpet maintenance, and kept its carpets clean by trying a new dry compound carpet care method. (MD)

There has been no significant legal action to force states or localities to equalize school facilities, despite U.S. public education's equal treatment philosophy. Another facilities issue is provision for access to the latest technology. Strategic planning can help educators create a positive learning environment by maintaining and improving…

It is critical that school facility planning and design include auxiliary spaces that uphold the primary instructional program. This article identifies major support elements (storage, hallways, cafeteria, library/media center, administrative and guidance offices, and outdoor facilities) to be incorporated and discusses how to make these…