Charter schools are public schools established under charters, typically with state or local entities. In return for more flexibility and autonomy, charter schools must meet specific accountability standards. This briefing from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) describes: (1) the challenges charter schools face when attempting to…

A screening and ranking procedure for selecting school sites in California is based on the criteria of safety, environment, size and shape, location, soils, topography, accessibility, utilities, political implications, public services, cost, and availability. An explanation of these criteria is included along with a list of secondary criteria.…

The Montgomery County Public Schools (Maryland) system has assembled in this document its policies, procedures, criteria, and standards that apply to educational facilities development. The policies it contains are part of a planning process that recognizes the interrelationship of its facilities planning policy with other policies such as those…

Regulatory guidelines governing the minimum schoolhouse construction standards as well as rules for new construction applications, school site selection, and approval procedures are presented. Appendices (comprising 95 percent of the publication) document the following: educational space guidelines; planning for modern education; school…

Several court cases involving acquisition, use, and disposal of property by institutions of higher education are briefly summarized in this chapter. Cases discussed touch on such topics as municipal annexation of university property; repurchase of properties temporarily allocated to faculty members; implications of zoning laws and zoning board…

In July 1987, North Carolina enacted legislation to provide funds for public school construction. This document defines and describes the educational spaces needed to support a comprehensive educational program and to set minimal standards for types of spaces and for sizes of spaces. Standards, comments, and recommendations are provided for the…

The 1986 North Carolina Public School Facilities Standards were legislated in 1996 to become Facility Guidelines. A Public School Facilities Task Force was appointed to review and make revisions. These 1997 guidelines define and describe minimum facilities to ensure educational program appropriateness and long-term cost efficiency. They were…

While the types of cases reported in this year's chapter are essentially the same as those reported in last year's, the number of certain types of cases have changed--in some instances significantly. For example, the number of cases raising constitutional issues in the areas of school construction, location, and property use have declined. On the…

The summer food service program for children, authorized by the National School Lunch Act is one of several childfeeding programs which the Congress authorized to safeguard the health and well-being of the nation's children. Serious abuses, criminal as well as administrative, have occurred in the summer feeding program. Most have involved private…

This is a school desegregation case brought by black parents and their children who attend the Boston public schools. Plaintiffs seek for themselves and on behalf of their class, it is stated, declaratory and injunctive relief against the defendants for a myriad of acts that allegedly violate the constitutional rights of the plaintiff class.…

The purpose of this handbook is to provide guidance to planners of new schools, and to those involved with additions and/or improvements to existing schools. This publication covers guidelines and pertinent information concerning: an outline for a comprehensive educational survey and guidelines for writing educational facility specifications;…