Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Ugly Ceiling Gets a Facelift

  • 01/01/16
Upgraded Ceiling

Winning the “Ugly Ceiling Contest” gave Lisha Kill Middle School new ceilings for free, allowing them to improve their classroom in a much needed way, while not impacting their tight budget.

Facilities director Mike O’Neil of the South Colonie School District in Albany, N.Y., is the winner of the Armstrong “Show Us Your Ugly Ceilings” Contest.

The contest, sponsored by Armstrong Ceiling & Wall Systems, offered building owners and facility managers an opportunity to win a grand prize of 1,000 square feet of Ultima ceiling panels by submitting a photo of a stained, dirty, or damaged ceiling in their facility.

O’Neil submitted a photo of a sagging ceiling that was coming apart above a classroom at Lisha Kill Middle School in Albany. After determining that the damaged middle school ceiling was the “ugliest” ceiling entered in the contest, a panel of Armstrong ceiling experts awarded 1,000 square feet of Ultima ceiling panels to O’Neil.

Winning the contest enabled O’Neil to replace the ailing ceiling without dipping into his tight maintenance budget. “We try to replace as many of these old ceiling panels as we can, but we’re on a tight budget,“ he explains. “That’s why I entered the contest — to see if I could win some new ceiling panels.”

The facilities director received many compliments from school officials after the Ultima ceiling was installed. “The new ceiling came out great,” says O’Neil, who was able to quickly replace the old ceiling panels using the existing grid. “It looks beautiful. It made a huge difference in the way that room looks. It’s like night and day.”

In addition to their smooth, clean visual, Ultima ceiling panels feature new Total Acoustics performance, which is the ability to provide both sound absorption and sound blocking in the same panel. To deliver that performance, the panels have a Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) of 0.70, meaning they absorb 70 percent of the sound that strikes them.

www.replacement-ceilings.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • S4L Announces 2026 Education Design Showcase Winners

    Spaces4Learning is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2026 Education Design Showcase! Now in its 27th year, the annual awards program honors innovative solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction across K–12 and higher education.

  • Embry-Riddle Completes Construction on Research, Lab Facility

    Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Daytona Beach, Fla., recently announced the end of construction on a new research and lab facility on campus. The Center for Aerospace Engineering II (CAT II) will support aerospace research and technology development and broke ground last summer.

  • Designing the Bridge Between Inclusivity and Independence in K–12 Schools

    Fostering independence is fundamental to learning and development for K–12 students. It offers many proven benefits, such as enhanced confidence, problem-solving, decision-making, and social skills. However, this foundational objective loses its impact if it’s not accessible and adaptable to all students. Inclusivity plays a critical role in cultivating independence and healthy autonomy for students, fostering positive student learning outcomes by uniting pedagogy with the physical learning environment.

  • Purdue Fort Wayne Opens New Student Housing Complex

    Purdue University Fort Wayne (PFW) in Fort Wayne, Ind., recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new, 600-bed student housing complex on campus, according to a news release.