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
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
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
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
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
Dr. Brian Benson, a family physician and his wife, Kaley Benson developed a symptom-screening software for schools called Cleared4School.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/21/20
"ViralBarrier" from Precise Tooling Solutions is intended specifically for K-12 and higher education use.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/20/20
Reopening Schools
Rural school districts in Wisconsin have asked the state to begin school earlier than usual citing concerns that the pandemic has interfered with student progress.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/14/20
Furniture and Equipment
U.S.-based Hy-Lite said its new panels are made of architectural-grade acrylic blocks that allow light through while protecting privacy.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/14/20
Los Angeles Unified School District and San Diego Unified School District announced they will not reopen for in-person classes next month due to increasing COVID-19 cases.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/13/20
Construction
Michigan State University has put the brakes on a number of campus construction projects to address a funding gap posed by the impact of the pandemic.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Sports Facilities
A North Carolina institution is almost finished with a million-dollar project in its stadium. The Western Carolina University project included the removal, demolition and replacement of the existing synthetic turf field and the addition of a new synthetic turf practice area.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Reopening
School districts must offer daily on-campus instruction for all students who wishes to attend, but any parent may request for their child to receive virtual instruction from any school that offers such instruction.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/08/20
Health Sciences Facilities
The University of North Florida has received $6 million in the latest state budget to build what the university has named the UNF MedNexus. The intent is to create an operation that connects regional healthcare providers with university students, faculty and researchers.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Construction has begun on a new facility that will be leased by a Pennsylvania college. Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology is expecting to move into the new building by June 1, 2021.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Reopening
Texas A&M said it would convert non-traditional spaces into classrooms for the fall semester, which starts on Aug. 19.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Health Sciences Facilities
Finlandia University's College of Health Sciences will be ready to receive students in fall 2020 in its new location, in spite of project delays due to a COVID-19 outbreak, according to the institution.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 07/08/20
Contest
The inaugural “Custodians Are Key” contest launched in September and recognizes the work of K-12 custodians around the country. Kris Kantor of Hayes Elementary in Lakewood, Ohio is the grand prize winner and will receive a prize valued $5,000, while his school receives $10,000.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 07/06/20
Reopening Schools
Gov. Gary Herbert approved the Utah State Board of Education’s requirements and recommendations for reopening schools in the state. As per the requirements, all Utah public schools must have reopening plans in place and posted online by August 1.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 06/29/20
Reopening
The Department of Public Instruction recommends smaller class sizes, alternating school-day schedules, and providing mental health support for students and staff.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 06/22/20
Reopening
Dallas ISD is waiting on direction from the state and haven’t solidified plans, yet. In the meantime, the district has created a first draft of safety and security guidelines for campus reentry, along with three different potential instructional models.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 06/15/20
New Construction
While the University of California San Diego has put some projects on hold due to financial constraints introduced by the pandemic, the university is forging ahead with construction work on its North Torrey Pines Living and Learning Neighborhood and planning for its Future College Living and Learning Neighborhood.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 06/03/20
New Construction
Des Moines' school board approved a resolution to continue work on a stadium that will serve the school district and Drake University.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 06/02/20
New Construction
Although the usual groundbreaking celebration was put off due to COVID-19, the Colorado State University System broke ground this month on its newest campus. The Denver site, dubbed "Spur," will eventually include three buildings, focused on the studies of food, water and health.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/28/20
The Atlanta-based institution will be installing more than 15,000 solar panels on 16 campus buildings. That represents 5.5 megawatts of solar generation, enough to produce about a tenth of the university's peak energy requirements.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/27/20
Reopening
Three-hundred and ten presidents responded to the survey on topics such as “their current plans for the fall, including actions they may require to consider reopening campus, the impact of the pandemic on future revenue, and the projected impact on fall enrollment numbers.”
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/26/20
Online Learning
About 500 Pre-K students at Escambia County School District will have access to a free online summer education program designed to help children make up for lost learning due to the coronavirus.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/26/20
Construction
Directions issued by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in late March suspended all non-essential construction activity in New York, leaving universities and colleges scrambling to put construction projects on hold in a manner that would allow them to pick up the work when closures have been lifted. At Binghamton University, part of the State University of New York system, that affected numerous building sites.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/19/20
Construction
Construction sites in Michigan that were under state shutdown orders are starting work again — including at the University of Michigan. The institution has begun working with state officials to crank up activities on multiple projects, including new construction and renovation and addition work.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/19/20
Safely Reopening
Although Baylor University intends to return to in-person classes in the fall, the Texas institution said that doesn't mean it's planning for a "normal start."
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/19/20
COVID-19
Appalachian State University recently learned that 16 subcontracted workers have tested positive for COVID-19.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
- 05/19/20
Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) in Cleveland, Ohio will cover tuition for students facing financial hardship due to COVID-19.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/13/20
Reopening Schools
Students at Willow Creek School in Montana returned to school on Thursday. The school, which serves between 50-60 students in grades K-12, is one of the first in the United States to reopen after schools closed in March.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/11/20
Awards & Recognition
Spaces4Learning has opened its 2020 New Product of the Year award program. Each year, the program recognizes new and emerging products and technologies for the outstanding contributions they make to K–12 and higher education.
Reopening Schools
Dallas Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Hinojosa laid out several possibilities for classes in August.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/04/20
The board strongly encourages districts to hold digital events and to use social media to highlight graduates with hashtags and messages. The board will allow in-person graduation events including “drive-in” and “drive-through” ceremonies.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 05/04/20
Food Service
Houston ISD and Houston Food Bank officials handed out 90,000 pounds of food at NRG Stadium on Saturday, April 18.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 04/20/20
Business
Michigan community colleges are seeing a decline in summer enrollment, an indication of what’s to come in the fall.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 04/20/20
Contingency Planning
Boston University is planning for the possibility that the fall term might have to be delayed and instead reopened in January 2021.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 04/13/20
Grant
The organization is calling IIE Network Member institutions to nominate international students who are not able to return to their home countries over the summer due to COVID-19 for a grant of up to $2,500.
- By Yvonne Marquez
- 04/13/20