By T. R. Dunlap Nobody should underestimate the importance of careful planning when schools engage in any operation or initiative. While many of us are eager to take an idea and run with it, the academic literature and case studies frequently remind us that planning cannot be ignored. The research has indicated that the quality of ...continue reading "Planning Resources for K-12 Schools"
T. R. Dunlap Conversations on the development of 21st century learning spaces highlight the important role of planning in creating environments that maximize student learning. School systems across our nation routinely develop multiple types of plans—strategic plans, site-based plans, school improvement plans, capital improvement plans, and short-term planning initiatives. Planning is a crucial element for the ...continue reading "Planning for 21st Century Learning Spaces"
In 2004, the Oregon Transportation and Growth Management Program contracted with the Community Planning Workshop (CPW) at the University of Oregon to conduct a year-long evaluation of Oregon’s school siting process. The purpose of the evaluation was twofold: (1) to develop a better understanding of the challenges and opportunities school districts and local governments experience ...continue reading "Planning for Schools & Liveable Communities: The Oregon School Siting Handbook"
Jeong, Ji, Koo, Hong, & Park, 2014 The environmental impacts of a building are determined in the project planning phase, affecting the whole life cycle of the building. Thus, they should be assessed in the project planning phase so as to reduce the whole environment impacts of the building. This study aims to develop a ...continue reading "A model for predicting the environmental impacts of educational facilities in the project planning phase"
Ford, 2016 The places where high school teachers teach have a relationship with what and how their students learn. Certain aspects of the physical environment have been examined for decades, such as those that affect basic physiological needs including but not limited to climate control, air quality, appropriate lighting, and cleanliness. In addition to these ...continue reading "Planning Classroom Design and Layout to Increase Pedagogical Options for Secondary Teachers"
Earthman and Cash, 2016 Many school systems in the United States face the prospect of renovating existing buildings rather than constructing new facilities because of budgetary limitations and constraints. The least disruption to the educational process when a building is scheduled for renovation is to move the student body to a vacant building. This option ...continue reading "Planning For A School Building Renovation"
Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability, Florida, 2006 The state’s current processes to select and fund higher education facility construction projects include multiple levels of review and ensure that institutional requests for new construction are coordinated with the state’s higher education goals, local strategic plans, and community development plans. View Report
The School Safety Planning Manual: Essential Resources for Developing a Comprehensive Safe School Plan developed to assist the K–12 public school system to create and implement safety plans in compliance with both state and federal laws. The 2007 Washington State legislature radically altered existing laws dealing with school safety plans, requiring a range of specific elements to each school’s plan, ...continue reading "School Safety Planning Manual, 2008"
The MSBA has instituted many reforms to make the MSBA’s school construction and renovation grant program more effective, efficient, and user-friendly for school districts and to ensure the long-term viability of the program. A vital component of these reforms is to protect the over $20 billion investment in school facility construction and renovation projects throughout the Commonwealth in the ...continue reading "Maintenance and Capital Planning Best Practices"
As America’s school buildings age, we face the growing challenge of maintaining the nation’s education facilities at a level that enables our teachers to meet the needs of 21st century learners. Facilities issues arise at all educational levels, from prekindergarten through postsecondary, and at all sites, from classrooms to administrative offices. Challenges arise in new and old facilities alike, although ...continue reading "Planning Guide for Maintaining School Facilities: School Facilities Maintenance Task Force"
