Many of our schools were better prepared for this possible pandemic, their emergency plans having been dusted off after the threat of the avian (bird) flu and SARS a few years back. . Given the human tendency to look on the bright side, my guess is that m
The Pell Grant program, originated in 1965, is seeing some changes lately. It received a boost in funding from the ARRA, and could see more changes with the proposed 2010 budget. Increasing the maximum grant awarded will help open up access to post-second
School facilities managers and maintenance staff have the difficult task of balancing the relationship of use, maintenance, quality, and budget. Safety concerns, vandalism, age of the development, user complaints, poor visual appearance, and lack of maint
Despite numerous federal, state, and local codes requiring routine testing and documentation NFPA 101, International Fire Code, and International Building Code to name a few mandated testing of emergency lighting units remains a "hit or
Since children spend most of their time in schools, daycare facilities, or at home, it is important to reduce their exposure to environmental pollutants as much as possible. Statistics show children receive the majority of their chemical exposure indoors
With the launch of YouTube EDU (www.youtube.com/edu) in March, Google has made available, for free, more than 200 full courses from 100 universities and colleges. Schools participating in YouTube EDU include MIT, Yale, Harvard, Stanford, and UC Berkeley.
The environmental and financial cost of non-compliance can be high, and surprise inspections from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or state regulators routinely turn up multiple violations, even at campuses that consider their compl
Without changes in the way buildings are designed and constructed, costs will continue to rise. Total world consumption of marketed energy is projected to increase by 50 percent from 2005 to 2030, per the U.S. Energy Information Administration. As univers
Gustavus Adolphus College is a private liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in St. Peter, MN. In an integrated and conscious effort to promote sustainable efforts, choices such as reusable to-go containers, high-efficiency wa
With the green movement gaining momentum, it is still a surprise to some at just how few districts have stepped up and committed to green resolutions for their schools. In Orange County (CA), slices of green can be found within several districts. At Brea
While the oil story is an important one, there is another pressing problem that has received little attention and is getting worse in more and more areas of the U.S. every year: chronic water shortages. Shortages are occurring in water-rich areas as well
Building Green and educational environments for special-needs students.
A survey published in a recent issue of USA Today asked average Americans how likely they were to shop for environmentally responsible products during the economic downturn. The answer surprised me. Thirty-four percent were more likely to, and only eight
The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future (NCTAF) recently released Learning Teams: Creating What's Next, a report detailing an impending wave of teacher retirements and new solutions to address the supply of teachers in our natio
Administrators committed to ensuring their campuses and surrounding communities are safe are also looking to align with contract security partners who want to provide security solutions with sustainability in mind. I lead the Higher Education division of
Educators are typically not experts in security and law enforcement and sometimes question which type of approach is best for providing security and/or law enforcement staffing for schools and special events. There are numerous approaches, ranging from un
Schools also need to do their homework on all of the elements of building or renovating green sustainable sites, water and energy efficiency, protection of natural resources, use of recycled and re-used materials, and the protection of indoor envir
Why should school districts worry about today's down economy? After all, the vast majority of their income comes from state legislatures and local property taxes, with some additional funding from the federal government.
School business officials sh
Youngstown State University (YSU), located in northeastern Ohio, encompasses approximately 4M sq. ft. Approximately 2M sq. ft. of the gross square footage is occupied as usable space. In 2006, YSU entered into a Performance Contract (PC) with a building e
What makes developing a sustainability plan so difficult is the disparate number of tangible and intangible elements that need to be considered, including energy use, campus mass transit, water use, recycling, indoor air quality, on-site alternative energ
To better understand the current rage for "green" buildings, it is important to refer to fundamental principles of sustainable design. Of these, the most basic ideas can be found in passive solar strategies that incorporate many traditions of in