In the past 50 years, the share of students enrolled in U.S. Catholic schools has declined from approximately 12% to 3%. In reaction, many urban Catholic schools have closed and subsequently reopened as public charter schools in order to receive governmental funding and to increase enrollment. As public schools, these Catholic- affiliated charter…

Currently, societies exert varied and sometimes contradictory pressures on universities. These pressures have been provoking discussion on the best role of these institutions to meet the needs of contemporary societies. Universities will assume different forms and models of organization, according to what each one will define as being its mission…

One might assume that, within the walls of a school, it is the shared responsibility of the school nurse, guidance counselor, physical fitness instructor, and food services staff to protect student health. In truth, such an important responsibility also belongs, in very large part, to the educational facility planner and school maintenance staff.…

Campuses of higher education are physical artifacts of the institutions' culture. No matter the institutional type, geographic location, or population it serves, "the campus is a visible, physical manifestation and indicator of organizational life" (D. Martin, 2006, p. iii). Artifacts serving as symbols of the institution's…

Enrichment clusters offer a way for schools to encourage a high level of learning as students and adults work together to develop a product, service, or performance by applying advanced knowledge and authentic processes to real-world problems. This study utilized a qualitative research design to examine the perceptions and experiences of two…

A school business manager who has been in the market for a new athletic field in the last 10 years has no doubt has been exposed to the front lines of an intense battle for market share between producers of natural grass and manufacturers of artificial turf. Each camp is well represented by powerful industry organizations across the country. As a…

The "Talking Stick" is published bimonthly, six times a year in January/ February, March/April, May/ June, July/August, September/October, and November/ December by the Association of College and University Housing Officers-International. Each issue is divided into three sections, namely: Features, Columns, and Departments. These sections contain…

In November 1996, the voters of Montgomery County (Maryland) approved by referendum an amendment to the County Charter that changed the County Council's review and approval cycle of the six-year Capital Improvements Program (CIP) from an annual to biennial cycle. The referendum specified that in odd-numbered fiscal years (on-years) the County…

School districts across North America are facing a crushing dilemma: invest millions of dollars to maintain outdated, educationally ineffective buildings or seek funding for expensive renovations, additions, and new construction to meet the evolving needs of today's learners. Compounding the issue is deferred facility maintenance. Educational…

This paper centres around a discussion of the design and rebuild of a secondary school in Birmingham (England) as part of the Building Schools of the Future (BSF) Programme. The BSF Programme was influenced by a vision of future schooling in which learning environments are transformed by the integration of ICT into teaching and learning practices.…

I'll never forget my amazement when my favorite jazz vocalist, also my teacher, revealed that even as a veteran musician, she still gets nervous on the stage. "Nervous energy encourages me to take chances" she said, emphasizing that taking chances is key to the musical improvisation for which she is known to this day. I enjoy finding…

In the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, the skills needed to have a successful career were very different than they are today. This case study of the Hammond Area Career Center's Multimedia Broadcast Academy shows how one Rust Belt community has revamped its approach to career and technical education and is preparing students for jobs in the new economy. This…

Staff are a university's key resource. Typically, research has concentrated on the contribution of academic staff, and has largely overlooked the crucial role of professional staff. However, recently there has been an increase in research by professional staff, about professional staff. In Australia, professional staff comprise more than half the…

"My thumb got me into this!" declares the new APPA President Mary Vosevich when asked how she entered the field of educational facilities management. It was 1984, and Vosevich, a Midwest native, was working at Monsanto in St. Louis as a research biologist, having earned her B.S. in horticulture/agriculture from the University of…

The two campuses that make up the West Valley-Mission Community College District (WVMCCD) in northern California's Santa Clara County share a history typical of many community colleges across the country. Its buildings were constructed in the 1960s and '70s, and like many public structures of that vintage, today they bear the ravages of time--in…