Ward 4 Council member Janeese Lewis George and several other members of the D.C. Council are taking action to make sure maintenance issues are resolved before a repair order is closed.

A new bill, called The School Work Order Integrity Amendment Act, requires the D.C. Department of General Services to get approval from a school principal, foreman or other school employee before a work order ticket can be closed.

The legislation is the result of repairs not getting finished because of miscommunication, or because city agencies aren’t clear on who’s responsible for certain jobs, prompting work orders to be closed prematurely, Lewis George said.

Lewis George said she hopes the new procedure is in place before the start of the 2023-24 school year.

DENVER — Denver Public Schools is set to close several elementary and middle schools to make up for a budget shortfall caused by declining enrollment. 
The specific schools will be announced in the coming days, a district spokesperson said. 
The school board approved criteria to close schools with fewer than 215 students, as well as schools with fewer than 275 students and a projected decline in enrollment. 
In the next three years, the district expects to enroll 3,000 fewer elementary and middle school students, it said. 
"Three thousand students may not seem like that many students, but to a budget where you’re receiving per-pupil funding, that’s about $36 million," district spokesperson Scott Pribble said.
"We know that there are impacts and it’s heartbreaking and difficult work, but in order for the district to remain solvent, it’s work that needs to happen," he said. 
The district said the budget shortfall means it cannot provide the same mental health supports, social and emotional services or specialized programming to schools with lower enrollment. 
"We need to make sure that we can provide the same quality services to all our schools," he said.
The district said it will identify schools that are "failing to remain financially solvent" and move to close them.
 

Del Norte Unified trustees committed nearly $4 million in COVID relief dollars to upgrade electrical systems at Joe Hamilton Elementary School and Crescent Elk Middle School a local contractor stated posed a hazard to students and staff.

Del Norte Unified School District will also use its Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) allocation to replace a generator at Crescent Elk Middle School.

DNUSD will be reimbursed for about 60 percent of the cost of the two electrical projects from the state Office of Public Services and Construction (OPSC), Director of Facilities and Maintenance Steve Morgan told trustees on Thursday.

“That reimbursement can go into other projects,” he said.

These projects, which are expected to be finished over the summer, come after the results of a 2020 survey revealed that the electrical systems at nine out of 11 district schools were in need repair and replacement, according to Morgan.

Schools in southwest Florida preemptively shut down ahead of Hurricane Ian in preparation for the destruction they knew would ensue. More than two weeks after the category 4 storm slammed into the coast, those schools are still closed as families and school districts recover from one of the state’s worst natural disasters.
It’s the most recent example of a growing trend over which education experts are increasingly sounding an alarm: More frequent and intense extreme weather events are disrupting school systems nationwide for weeks, months and, in some cases, years.
Ft. Myers Beach Elementary in Lee County is one of those schools. Just one block from the ocean, the school was ravaged by Hurricane Ian’s powerful winds, which tore down walls. The storm surge rose to the top of the school doors, destroying nearly everything inside.
When Melissa Wright saw her fourth-grade son’s school for the first time after the storm, she could only manage three words: “My goodness gracious.”
Her concern soon shifted from the physical damage to her 10-year-old son’s educational future as she waits for schools in the county to reopen next week. And she worries he will fall behind amid back-to-back disasters.
“I just feel bad for him and all the students who had to go through Covid a couple of years ago – and that completely disrupted everything,” Wright said. “And now in fourth grade, which is another pretty impactful year, everything is up in the air again.”
 

Since the arrival of coronavirus more than two years ago, state and municipal officials have been jousting over who should pay to upgrade aging air quality control systems in Connecticut’s public schools.
Gov. Ned Lamont and the legislature took a step to help towns this year. But half of the $150 million they dedicated to the problem — which may not be enough — is temporary money that expires after 2025.
And as municipalities complete their applications for state aid this fall, leaders say one question still looms large. Will this cost fall primarily on a regressive local property tax system upon which Connecticut already relies heavily, or will state government — which saw its coffers swell amidst the pandemic but remains swamped with massive, long-term debt — pick up the tab?
“It’s this perpetual decision that’s always made,” said Joe DeLong, executive director of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities. “If we have to pick our poison, we’re always going to push [new costs] onto the property tax.”
Towns that use ARPA funds get limited state aid
No one knows exactly how much it will cost to upgrade heating, ventilation, and other air quality control systems statewide in public schools that often skimped on maintenance.
Local education budgets are hampered by state aid that failed to keep pace with inflation. State government spent much of the past two decades — prior to 2018 — dealing with its own budget deficits, prompting officials to curtail one of the most generous school construction cost-sharing programs in the country.
 

As fall temperatures cool across the U.S., many schools will struggle to ventilate classrooms while also keeping students and teachers comfortable and healthy. Children and teachers spend more than six hours a day in classrooms during the school year, often in buildings that are decades old and have inadequate heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning, or HVAC, systems.

Fall 2022 marks the start of the fourth school year affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has spotlighted the importance of indoor air quality in schools. Ideally, all school buildings would have adequate ventilation, filtered air in each classroom, and windows that open. Sadly, this is not the case—and indoor air quality in many schools is poor as a result. This is especially problematic in the wake of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s August 2022 COVID-19 guidance for schools, which scales back other measures for limiting transmission, such as masking, testing, and quarantining.

The Chula Vista Elementary School District in California has installed an 8.1 MW solar microgrid that is expected to save the district $70 million over the next 25 years.
Located in metropolitan San Diego, Chula Vista is one of California’s largest elementary school districts. More than 28,000 students pass through the doors of 50 schools each year. Forty-six of those schools are now home to solar panels powering the districts’ new microgrid.
School microgrids educate and save money
The solar microgrid project is just one of the efforts the district has made to reduce its carbon footprint and its energy costs. Chula Vista deputy superintendent Oscar Esquivel said, “Our team has done an outstanding job of continually finding ways to increase energy efficiency and savings while doing our part to improve the environment.”
He adds that one of the district’s goals is to model the importance of energy awareness, conservation, and sustainability for its students.
The $32 million solar microgrid project was funded by a general obligation (GO) bond, a type of municipal bond, and was completed by ENGIE North America.
The system includes battery storage and 18,050 solar panels, which are shading school buildings, the Transportation Yard, and the Education Service and Support Center.
 

Alexandria leaders agree that the city either needs to expand its aging middle schools or completely build a new one.

There are now 15,700 students within Alexandria City Public Schools, and roughy 2,000 more students are expected by 2024. That puts the city in a tricky position, as 10 ACPS schools are more than 70 years old and need continual maintenance, and a surge in elementary school kids means that Alexandria needs more middle school space.

The need for a new school was outlined in a joint facilities update between City Council and the School Board on Wednesday, October 12.

“We’ve got to be creative here with how we do things,” Mayor Justin Wilson said. “We can meet the needs of enrollment in our schools with properties we own today.”

A new middle school isn’t budgeted in the city’s 10-year fiscal year 2023-2032 Capital Improvement Program Budget. Three school replacements are currently funded: the Alexandria City High School (ACHS) Minnie Howard campus, George Mason Elementary School and Cora Kelly School.

The CIP also includes more than $12 million for the renovation of an office building at 1703 N. Beauregard Street for development by 2030. The space could be used as swing space for another school under construction or as a new 600-student-capacity school.

ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) — Athens High School looks pretty worn and dated compared to other high schools in southeast Ohio, a fact not lost on parents.
A recent post in a Facebook forum for parents in the Athens school district mentioned visiting Logan High School for a soccer game and noted how beautiful the facility is.
Other parents chimed in with similar comments about how much nicer other schools in the area are and wondered when the new high school in Athens is getting built.
The answer: Soon (maybe).
It’s complicated. The district is waiting on state funding to build the new school, and right now Athens is second on the state’s funding list.
Athens Superintendent Tom Gibbs said he expects the district that’s first on the list will get funded in the next year. And then it will be Athens’ turn — unless another district cuts ahead in line.
To make sense of all this, it helps to understand how school construction in Ohio is funded.
School districts are ranked based on their perceived ability to pay for construction costs out of their own pocket. Districts that have less ability to pay are ranked higher and get a higher percentage of the construction costs covered by the state.
The ranking is done using a formula that considers the average property values in a district. Because the tax levies districts use to raise funds for school construction are tied to property values, the purpose of this formula is to make sure poorer districts get higher contributions from the state.
“The underlying objective is to create equitable facilities” among districts, said Dave Hayden, president of the Athens school board.
Property values are only part of the calculation. The state’s formula also considers the number of students in a district. So districts with lower property values and higher student enrollment are going to rank higher, and get a bigger funding match from the state, than districts with higher values and lower enrollment.
 

The San Francisco Unified School District says it needs $1.7 billion in the next five years to repair and renovate its buildings.

The estimation comes from an assessment of SFUSD’s 148 sites detailed at a Board of Education meeting on Tuesday. The report from consultants lays the groundwork for a new facilities master plan and, eventually, a bond measure to fund that plan. 

To meet that need, the district may ask San Francisco voters to approve a $1 billion bond—roughly the district’s operating budget—in 2023 or 2024. 

The last bond for SFUSD facilities in 2016 authorized $744 million.

“We’ve been bond rich and maintenance poor,” Dawn Kamalanathan, SFUSD’s head facilities officer, said. “Without maintenance dollars to keep this up, you will see this deterioration. Underinvestment in capital structure is a statewide, if not national issue.”

Bond funds cannot be used on operating costs, including maintenance. Voters nationwide routinely approve measures allowing governments to sell bonds to raise money over time for a specific purpose, such as a school. 

Electrical systems made up nearly $500 million of the estimated cost and HVAC systems made up a little under $400 million, according to the district’s presentation Tuesday. Of the total estimated cost, $340,000 was flagged as needed to address life safety risks. 

Francis Santos, acting superintendent for the Guam Department of Education, announced weeks ago that Oceanview Middle School was expected to move classes to Southern High School for the rest of the school year to allow for repairs to be made to the Hågat campus.
The announcement from GDOE leadership was given prior to the Department of Public Health and Social Services Division of Environmental Health releasing a host of negative findings from recent site inspections that ended with OMS getting a “D” grade on following health regulations and statutes.
Two site inspections were conducted at OMS in September. The first, on Sept. 14, involved an assessment of classrooms in its D-wing and the school’s restroom facilities. According to Public Health's report, the school’s structure in areas inspected was "compromised."
“Compromised structure of walls and ceilings in all rooms in the D-Wing due to visible water,” the report stated.
 

The Columbia Board of Education will use a new system for some upcoming construction projects.

The vote was unanimous to adopt what is termed a "construction manager at risk" system for a new elementary school on the property of John Warner Middle School, addition and renovation of Columbia Area Career Center, and an addition at Battle Elementary School.

"We believe this is our best way to move forward with our bond dollars," said CPS Chief Operating Officer Randy Gooch.

The district currently uses what is termed as a "design-bid-build" system, where the contractor is hired after the design and bidding process.

In the "construction manager at risk" system, the construction manager acts as the contractor and is involved early in the design process for a team approach from the start, Gooch said after the meeting.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — State commissioners approved a $1.7 billion bond for Guilford County Schools to fund facility repairs, upgrades and reconstruction. 
Back in 2019, Guilford County Schools reported more than 50% of its facilities ranked poor or unsatisfactory, leaving the district with more than $2 billion in repairs and $800 million in deferred maintenance. In 2020, the district received a $300 million bond to start addressing some of those repairs, but it needed more. In the May primary, residents voted to pass a $1.7 billion bond to continue repairs, renovations and reconstruction. 
Mark Miller has seen the need of these schools first-hand. He’s the director of maintenance and operations for Guilford County Schools. Crews are currently repairing a leak in the roof of Swann Middle School, where students are learning in a 100-year-old building. 
“Our customers’ needs are currently not being met fully, and this bond gives us the opportunity for our aging facilities to be able to fix them,” he said.
 

MARLBORO COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) - Multiple school districts in South Carolina will receive millions in funding to replace and renovate school facilities.

State Superintendent Molly Spearman and Marlboro County leaders will formally announce the allocation of $21 million to school districts in the Pee Dee on Wednesday.

Dillon County School District Four will receive $12 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding and $3 million in state funding to renovate and replace aging school facilities.

In April, the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDOE) commissioned a study of schools in the state’s poorest counties to help with deciding how much capital funding would go toward disadvantaged schools. The review found that schools in Dillon Four, especially five elementary schools, were in need of modification and renovation. The schools have an average age of 73 years old with the oldest being East Elementary School which is almost 100 years old.

WESTPORT — Armed with an adjustable $92.4 million 10-year capital plan, the Board of Education is ready to move forward on the first two years
This is year one.
The board voted 7-0 last week to ask the Board of Finance for $83,906 to fund projects in the 2022-23 school year.
The projects exclude a building envelope evaluation for Long Lots Elementary, which has already been evaluated, and Coleytown Middle which was recently renovated. That leaves four other elementary schools, Bedford Middle School and Staples High School, which would get comprehensive studies.
The projects on this year’s list are:
a security and accessibility evaluation of half the schools in town.
an in-depth evaluation of Coleytown Elementary to see if it can be renovated.
a modified mechanical evaluation at Saugatuck and Bedford.
 ancillary costs to wrap up the Coleytown Elementary School modular classroom project.
demolition of the modular classroom at Kings Highway.
HVAC work at Greens Farms and Kings Highway.
Supt. of Schools Thomas Scarice said there are few items on the list that board members have not seen before. The total requested is less than originally penciled into the 10-year forecast.
 

Over the last ten years, enrollment in the Anchorage School District has dropped by 5,000 students. Now, there are 18 schools in the district operating at less than 65% capacity. 

That enrollment decline is one of the big reasons why the district faces a budget gap of at least $68 million next year.

The district is considering closing some schools to help fill that gap. District chief financial officer Jim Anderson said the district could save between $2.5 and 3.5 million if it closed five elementary schools, depending on the schools and whether the district would need to add new bus routes.

But he knows it won’t be easy.

“Everywhere you go, everyone loves, adores, their neighborhood school,” he said. “It is a community center in many cases.”

Birth rates are declining all over Alaska, and fewer young couples are moving to Anchorage. As fewer young kids enter the school system, elementary schools shrink. But as those kids grow up, Anderson said, all schools will eventually feel the impact.

The devastation from Hurricane Ian has left schools shuttered indefinitely in parts of Florida, leaving storm-weary families anxious for word on when and how children can get back to classrooms.

As rescue and recovery operations continue in the storm’s aftermath, several school systems in hard-hit counties in southwestern Florida can’t say for sure when they’ll reopen. Some schools are without power and still assessing the damage, as well as the impact on staff members who may have lost homes or can’t return to work.

Shuttered schools can worsen the hurricane’s disruption for children. Recovery from natural disasters elsewhere suggests the effects on kids can be lasting, particularly in low-income communities that have a harder time bouncing back.

“In a week or two, we’ll have forgotten about Hurricane Ian. But these districts and schools and students will be struggling months and years later,” said Cassandra R. Davis, an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina.

Legislators will begin taking a new look at an old dilemma Thursday: the question of paying for new school buildings.

A legislative “interim committee” will hold its first meeting to discuss school building construction issues. And the committee could be working on an aggressive timetable: The goal is to come up with some ideas by December — which could translate into bills for the 2023 legislative session that begins in January.

“Our intent is to make some progress in an area where we haven’t made some progress,” said Sen. Dave Lent, R-Idaho Falls, a co-chair of the 10-member House-Senate committee.

For years, not much has changed in the way Idaho builds schools.

The Legislature has long balked at putting state dollars into school buildings, passing on most of the cost to local property owners. Meanwhile, the Idaho Constitution makes it hard for school districts to bankroll buildings, requiring two-thirds voter support to pass a local bond issue.

Neither of those political realities have changed much over the years.

But political momentum could be building behind a change.

Since Idaho is sitting on a record budget surplus — and since legislators in September agreed to put an additional $330 million a year into K-12 — education lobbying groups have intensified their push for state funding of facilities.

Boston Public School parents and local education activists are increasingly worried about what they fear will be inevitable school closings and consolidations as enrollment continues to decline. From 2015 to today, the number of students educated by the BPS has dropped by 15%, from 54,000 students to 46,000.

Parents and school reform advocates said they want a master plan for the $2 billion in school building changes that Mayor Michelle Wu proposed in the spring as part of her Green New Deal for BPS. Some said a detailed blueprint would give children more educational stability and allow families to plan for changes, as well as ensure racial fairness. Others said urgent and comprehensive planning is a financial necessity in a city where enrollment is trending downward.

Brenda Ramsey, a Dorchester mother of two, doesn’t like the current uncertainty. Her youngest daughter attends the PA Shaw, a school that may — or may not — be on the chopping block. She already experienced the closure of the Mattahunt Elementary five years ago with her oldest daughter and isn’t eager to go through that again.

“I don't know if [district leaders] know what it's like to have to go through a shutdown,” Ramsey said. “It's traumatic for the students, it’s traumatic for the families.”

WASHINGTON — DC Public Schools gets a failing grade from some parents and teachers when it comes to keeping up with repairs to its aging school buildings. Now, one of D.C.'s Councilmembers says the district must do better.

Jennifer Fitzpatrick, a teacher at Langdon Elementary School in Ward 5, took her complaints about slow repairs to social media, tweeting at D.C.’s Mayor and the Chancellor of Public Schools: “My heart hurts for these kids and our staff that you have shown, through your lack of action, that you don’t care.”

One Langdon parent responded that her son’s classroom “hasn’t had lights or working AC since Sept. 6”.

At-Large DC Councilmember Robert White is Chair of the DC Council’s Committee on Facilities and Procurement which has worked to streamline and speed up work orders across the school district. Including a backlog of hundreds of broken security cameras district-wide.