Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Florida K–12 District Partners with Facility Management Systems Provider

  • By Matt Jones
  • 05/15/24

Broward County Public Schools (BCPS) in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., recently announced a partnership with facilities management platform Facilitron to incorporate its solutions across the district, according to a news release. Facilitron offers its services to 10,000 K–12 and higher-ed schools across 31 states to provide efficient and cost-effective ways of sharing their buildings and grounds. BCPS is the country’s sixth-largest school district, with 356 campuses and more than 250,000 students, the news release reports.

Facilitron functions like an Airbnb for public spaces. Public schools, universities, and private facility owners can rent out facilities like meeting rooms, theaters, athletic fields, and gyms as event spaces for individuals and community groups. The move has been one way that many public-school districts of all sizes are taking advantage of to relieve budget constraints.

“Historically, pen and paper management of these rental programs has been tedious and inconsistent, with the increased costs associated with facility upkeep, security and staffing taking away from the funding that the schools desperately need for their own programs,” said Jeff Benjamin, Facilitron CEO. “We’re utilizing our technology to transform the way public and private space operators manage and monetize their buildings, and we’re helping foster meaningful change, driving revenue which can go directly back to the classrooms.”

BCPS incorporates hundreds of gyms, cafeterias, fields, and parking lots; as well as 70 auditoriums and 16,000 classrooms, the news release reports. In addition to scheduling and administrative functions, Facilitron can also help event coordinators connect to building systems like HVAC and lighting control in their desired spaces.

“Using valuable data to make its decisions, BCPS is transforming the way it runs its facility rental programs and quickly becoming a model for our country’s safest schools,” said Benjamin. “We’re proud to be working with forward-thinking districts like BCPS across the country, and we’re excited to continue to grow and develop our platform capabilities to help schools and communities successfully share resources.”

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • New Jersey Day School Opens New Science & Entrepreneurship Building

    Saddle River Day School (SRDS) in Saddle River, N.J., recently celebrated the grand opening of the new Dr. Kristen Walsh Hall of Science & Entrepreneurship, according to a news release. The school partnered with DIG Architecture on the 32,000 square foot facility, completed on a 17-month construction timeline in time for the beginning of the new school year.

  • Western Kentucky University, Gilbane Announce “Elevate WKU” Partnership

    Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Ky., recently announced that it has reached the financial close on a on a public-private partnership (P3) with Gilbane Development, according to a news release.

  • UNH Marks Construction Milestone on Oceanic Exploration Facility

    The University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H., recently celebrated a major construction milestone with a beam-signing ceremony for the new Center of Excellence for Operational Ocean and Great Lakes Mapping, according to a news release. The facility’s ultimate goal is to support research, training and technical assistance in ocean mapping.

  • California District Opens New Robotics Center

    The Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD) in Cupertino, Calif., recently held a Grand Opening ceremony for a new, district-wide Robotics Center, according to a news release. The 14,500-square-foot facility was designed by Quattrocchi Kwok Architects (QKA); Landmark Constructors served as the builder and Blach Construction as general construction manager.