Sustainability
Colorado State University signed a deal that will move the Fort Collins institution closer to its goal of shifting all of its energy needs to renewable electricity by 2030.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 11/05/20
Construction
Construction workers are five times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 than other kinds of workers.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 11/05/20
Technology
An education technology company better known for its payment solutions is promoting functionality within its software to help schools manage the number of students allowed in a specific space.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 11/05/20
The structure will include a multicultural center and a rooftop auditorium and will largely replace the campus' Rice Memorial Center.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 11/05/20
Cleaning
The Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) will host a three-part webinar series called “COVID-19: The Second Wave,” beginning Thursday, Nov. 12.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 11/04/20
Furniture
MiEN Company, a furniture company serving the education industry, debuted four new furniture products to help institutions outfit active learning spaces.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 11/04/20
Sustainability
Sustainable flooring is a smart choice for schools interested in providing a healthy learning environment and demonstrating their commitment to a better global environment.
Sustainability
A community college in northern California has projected a savings of $4.2 million over the next 20 years from an implementation of solar.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 10/22/20
Career Tech
A South Carolina university has just set up a three-acre site to give their construction students a permanent space for hands-on learning.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 10/22/20
Accessibility
Northern Arizona University is working with Quantum Spatial, a geospatial data company, to develop an accessibility map to help people with mobility issues more easily navigate the hilly campus.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 10/21/20
Rennovation
The University of Central Missouri has gone public with an update on a multi-year masterplan for renovating the Elliott Student Union, dubbed as the "campus living room," by the university's community.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 10/21/20
Cleaning
How do you create a hygienic and safe environment equipped to handle everyday usage and increased handwashing activity by students, faculty, administration and staff? And, how do you improve the restroom experience to make it more appealing to its users?
Podcast
In this episode, we spoke to Tom Saccenti, a former campus police chief and security expert, about active shooter response planning in schools. His first piece of advice is to walk through an active shooter scenario with all teachers, janitors, staff members, etc. at the school.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 10/13/20
Acoustics
When a physical space offers a little passive noise control, such as high cubicle walls, private offices or softer, sound-absorbing materials, the effects on the well-being of each person — as well as their productivity — can be profoundly impacted.
Spaces
Faculty, staff and students at Grand Canyon University's College of Fine Arts and Production have constructed an outdoor theatre for use this play season, which addresses COVID-19 restrictions while still allowing students (and their audiences) to enjoy live productions.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 10/07/20
Cleaning
Floors are too often overlooked when it comes to fighting the spread of infection. For many years, many hospital administrators did not even believe it was necessary to disinfect floors. Now we know better. Floors, as well as the tools used to clean floors, deserve close attention when it comes to minimizing the spread of coronavirus.
- By Robert Kravitz
- 10/06/20
COVID-19
Two new reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conclude that COVID-19 is spreading on college campuses due to congregate housing, the increase of social gatherings, and disregard for mask wearing.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/30/20
New Construction
A private for-profit university in northern California has received city approval to build a new on-campus dormitory for its medical students.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 09/29/20
New Construction
St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, TX is nearing completion of new drone lab, which is on target to be done in October.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 09/29/20
Cleaning
Imagine a Roomba with a plastic pillar on top, roaming through a room dispensing disinfectant onto chairs, table-tops and other surfaces.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 09/28/20
HVAC
A building’s HVAC technology can help decrease the transmission rate or mitigate the risk of exposure. Thus, schools must consider their HVAC system as part of their overall COVID-19 mitigation strategy, in addition to social distancing, cleaning, screening, signage and operational practices.
Learning Spaces
A Colorado non-profit will launch a mobile preschool experience in October for families with children ages 3 to 5 years old who do not attend a traditional preschool program.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/28/20
New Construction
The three-story, 75,000 square-foot expansion and renovation of the campus provides added capacity to a rapidly growing population in the Northwest Independent School District. The project was headed by Perkins & Will.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/23/20
Contest
The eight-month campaign recognizes the work of K-12 custodians across the country and honors them and their school with a $15,000 prize package.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/22/20
As part of a phased ramp-up in its return to full operations, Northwestern University Athletics and Recreation has installed filtration systems in the locker and weight rooms and other high-traffic spaces in its athletic facilities.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 09/21/20
Media Centers
If the global pandemic sidelined your plans for creating a very inviting, collaborative, nurturing media center space, get your vision back on track with these five success tips.
- By Christina Counts
- 09/21/20
Classrooms
Middle school students began classes on Monday at the newly constructed building at Roberts Academy, a private school for students with dyslexia.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/14/20
Software
SchoolStatus, which produces a mass notification and communication software-as-a-service platform for schools, has added functionality to enable contact tracing reporting and tracking.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 09/14/20
Reopening
Residence hall staff and graduate students at the University of Michigan are on strike due to lack of coronavirus health protections on campus. The grad students and residence hall staff began separate strikes on the same day, Sept. 8.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/10/20
Reopening
Bradley University is requiring the entire student body to quarantine for two weeks because of a spike in COVID-19 on campus, officials announced this week. The temporary quarantine is in effect until Sept. 23.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/10/20
Planning
At the onset of a project, the design team and the district must unite to develop the appropriate “Visioning Process” to gain input from teachers, administrators, parents, students, and members of the public. This typically takes the form of in-person workshops or on virtual platforms as we encountered this past spring. The architect can then use that feedback to develop a customized school design that meets the district’s goals and expectations.
- By Regan Shields Ives
- 09/09/20
Podcast
In this episode of Schools In Focus podcast, I speak to Belinda Oakley, CEO of Chartwells K12 and Seth Ferriell, CEO of SSC Services for Education, about school food service during a pandemic.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 09/08/20
Acoustics
If there is not enough sound absorption in spaces for learning, they are overly loud, reverberant and stressful; not an environment conducive for effective education. Up to one of every four words cannot be understood by students in many classrooms, according to guidelines by the Acoustical Society of America.
Sustainability
Gen Z is advocating for immediate action to secure their future. However, limited by their age, Gen Z is looking to older generations to support them through social and legislative change and conscientious transformations — socially, educationally, and within the built-environment.
- By Beth Pearcy and Erin Flaherty
- 09/01/20
The complex itself, an impressive structure wrapped in glass, aluminum, and limestone on the northeast corner of the Northwestern campus, right on Lake Michigan—an enviable site not only for the dazzling lake view, but also for its proximity to the campus’ student residences, classrooms and other facilities.
Reopening
New York City public schools are set to reopen on Sept. 10. However, the city’s teachers, principals, and staff say schools are unprepared to reopen and are pressuring Mayor Bill de Blasio to delay the start of in-person instruction by several weeks.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 08/19/20
HVAC
AI can change its instructions to your HVAC equipment based on the number of students in a room, the time of day, changes in weather throughout the day, and more, all while ensuring a comfortable environment for your building occupants.
Products
A company that produces technology for the food industry has developed a "welcome center" that schools can use to automate student and staff check-in.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 08/18/20
Cleaning & Sanitizing
Will a more methodical, well-thought-out approach be implemented for disinfectant use or, will they be once again randomly applied, essentially using a “hope for the best” mentality? Let’s hope application is not random, and here is why. In the U.S., disinfectants are considered “pesticides” by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and rightly so.
HVAC
A Florida company with an office in Purdue Research Park has introduced a technology it said would help schools reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 08/12/20
Episode 5
Stu Rothenberger, Principal at DLR Group, discusses flexibility on a campus scale, the need for long-term resiliency plans, tackling equity issues, and creating smaller interaction spaces in a post-COVID19 learning environment.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 08/12/20
Safety and Security
Many of the CDC’s guidelines can be met through the use of technology, and schools should be investing in and implementing technology solutions that not only helps them adhere to CDC guidelines this fall, but bolsters their overall school safety now and in the future.
Access Control
A company that produces physical security products is repositioning its products to address the needs of facilities under new restrictions. The offerings from LenelS2 cover touchless access, occupancy management, enforced access control and screening solutions.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 08/03/20
Healthy Schools
An education technology company that produces training has compiled a set of videos to help districts prepare for school reopenings.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/28/20
Facilities
Emphasis on single sleeping unit spaces will probably dominate in residence hall design in coming months and years, along with common areas that encourage physical distancing, wider entrances and kitchens that allow for one-way traffic patterns. Those are the predictions of student housing design experts at KWK Architects.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/28/20
Technology
What does it mean for a learning space to support the use of technology? It means the space has been intentionally designed to make it easy for teachers and students to seamlessly use any technology they might need, without having to disrupt a lesson or cut into valuable learning time.
- By Cindy Eggebrecht-Weinschreider
- 07/27/20
Safely Reopening
Chicago Public Schools is conducting several virtual meetings this week to gather feedback on the district’s reopening plans for the fall. The first one was held Monday morning
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/27/20
Planning
Here are five ways that K-12 school districts can keep their learning space design projects on track in a world where social distancing rules and shutdowns interfere with normal operations.
- By Manuel Cordero and Dr. Christina Counts
- 07/22/20
Sustainability
The Los Angeles Community College District has vowed to eliminate its carbon footprint entirely over the next two decades.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/22/20
Maintenance and Operations
As universities begin to welcome students back, directors of college recreational centers will need to develop plans, policies and protocols to maintain a safe and healthy environment. The many “moving parts” that make up college recreational center operations present some unique challenges for maintaining a safe and clean facility.