High-growth school districts can learn from Park City, Utah, about the adoption of school facility impact fees. These fees are levied against new residential units to offset the additional costs to a school district. A sidebar summarizes variation in state laws pertaining to impact fees and cites some legal challenges to their imposition. (MLF)

Planning to raise funds for a small-scale or specific college capital improvement project requires a different approach for background research, writing, and design of solicitation publications, use of volunteers, and visits to donors than does a larger project. A civic purchase-and-renovation project in Ohio illustrates the principles used. (MSE)

An international forum for exchange of ideas about school facilities led to the founding of the Programme on Educational Building within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Challenged by new demands on building, new curricula, new teaching styles, and the rate of change, the program's current work sets out to help…

The recently completed American School in Aberdeen, Scotland, serves the children of U.S. oil company employees and other Scottish and foreign children. Describes the program manager's role, explains how to select the architect and contractor, and offers advice on what to remember when building abroad. (MLF)

The Interim Financing Program in California allows school districts to sell tax-exempt obligations for approved school construction projects and obtain reimbursement from the state at some future date. (MLF)

Describes the Direction 2000 program at Mary Ward Catholic Secondary School in Toronto, which features large subject resource areas instead of classrooms, a schoolwide computer network developed in conjunction with Unisys Canada, computer education across the curriculum, and an automated approach to information retrieval. (DMM)

Many schools are looking at ways to centralize the distribution and retrieval of video, voice, and data transmissions in an integrate information system (IIS). A centralized system offers greater control of hardware and software. Describes media network planning to retrofit an Illinois' high school with a fiber optic-based IIS. (MLF)

The New York City Prototype Schools Program was initiated in 1987 as one of the strategies to design and build new facilities more quickly and at a reasonable cost. The prototype school building features five different blocks that can be configured in a variety of ways to meet individual site requirements. (MLF)

Focuses on ways to meet the facility needs of students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Provides a definition of inclusion; discusses some processes to design school environments that support a side range of student needs; and presents a process that will enable facility planning teams to move all students from self-contained classrooms…

Poses questions that school board members and administrators must address in planning school facilities to educate all students. Lists 24 questions that address the changing demographics within the community and demonstrate that school facilities of tomorrow will need to meet the diverse learning needs of all children. (MLF)

Outlines the designing of a new classroom building to promote the use of technology in instruction at the University of Central Florida. Highlights include involvement with faculty, students, and architects; focus-group meetings; use of TeamNet, a computer program for collecting participant input; and an outline of physical, support, and…

Describes how educational facility design impacts learning style needs that act as the basis for cognitive learning. Recommends involving cognitive learning specialists, interior environmental planners, and creative engineering personnel in the planning and design process to enhance learning, maximize technology use, and improve educational…

Examines approaches to enhancing school learning environments in an era of public resistance to supporting large school building capital projects. Provides several examples of collaborative initiatives that help produce productive and compelling learning environments by expanding the boundaries of the classroom into the community. (GR)

Provides reasons for using dome architecture in building educational facilities and describes the development of two such dome facilities in Arizona: a pre-kindergarten through Grade 8 multipurpose facility for Native-American students, and a school library and parent center. Highlights the facilities' interior-design features and some cost…

Describes nationally recognized educational-facility designs from around North America, including the four 1997 James D. MacConnell Award winners. Features profiles of 13 elementary schools, 6 middle schools, 13 high schools, and 5 other types of schools. Contains pictures and facility synopses, and lists occupancy date, building capacity, project…