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The Lowdown on Residence Hall Flooring

Selecting carpet or tile isn't as easy as specifying the best material when it comes to residence hall flooring.

The Three-Year Plan

In an effort to save undergraduates time and money, some colleges are now offering students a three-year bachelor's degree. While popular in Europe, very few U.S. higher-ed institutions offer this choice to their students. We explore why one college decid

A Good Neighbor

Founded in 1824, Philadelphia's Thomas Jefferson Medical College is the largest private medical school in the United States. When the college decided to add a new building to its urban campus, the administration needed to make definitive design choic

Getting the Word Out

Across the country, colleges and universities are installing mass notification systems to inform their campus communities about emergencies, as well as more routine problems such as closings due to inclement weather. Systems run the gamut from easy-to-lea

Intergenerational Campuses

A new phrase has popped up in the K-12 school lexicon: intergenerational campuses. In short, an intergenerational campus is a community-use campus on steroids; it is a campus that has something or perhaps many things of interest to people of all ages.

Cutting-Edge Technology Revolutionizes Learning

Drexel University's Center for Graduate Studies in Sacramento, CA, which opened in January 2009, is a story about the wisdom of careful planning and the role that technology played and will continue to play in fulfilling the Center's educational

A 'White Glove' Inspection for the Invisible

ICM is a systematic approach to cleaning that entails using best practices to clean facilities and to measure the effectiveness of the cleaning program using a 21st-century version of the "white glove" approach.

Seizing an Opportunity: Creating ADA-Compliant, Attractive Signage

Well-designed campus signage is part of a school's marketing toolkit, but it must also guide people of all abilities. Here's how to create ADA-compliant signage that is also streamlined, cohesive, and attractive.

Combating Cyber Bullying

Technology can be used to promote deliberate, repeated and hurtful behavior with the intent to harm others.

Stepping Closer to Carbon Neutrality With Biomass Gasification

Its first fire lit in December 2008, Middlebury College's biomass gasification plant is the result of several years of study, research, and collaboration between the College's students, faculty, staff, and trustees.

Commissioning Strategies for Campus Facilities

If LEED states that commissioning is the key to acquiring a building that performs as intended, what about building systems that were never commissioned? Short of a substantial system failure, can we assume optimal performance? The answer is absolutely no

Performance Contract Saves Energy and Money

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) has 14 million sq. ft., 5,000 classrooms, 187 structures, and 75,000 students. With rising energy costs and aging equipment, how were district administrators to save money on energy costs? With a little help from thei

Improving Residence Hall Security

While colleges and universities implement improved building design concepts, top-flight security camera systems, and truly amazing access control technologies, it is equally important to improve the awareness of students as a means to create the human sup

Meeting Requirements: Testing Emergency Lighting Systems

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

Combating Cyber Bullying

To reduce cyber bullying, multiple strategies must be employed. The collective efforts of staff, students, and parents are needed to protect all children. In addition, educators and parents need to teach students the pro-social behaviors they will need th

New Study From CoSN Reveals Positive Impact of Web 2.0 Tools in K-12 Classrooms, Slow Adoption of Technology

As Web 2.0 tools grow in popularity among school-age children, the inevitable step for schools is to incorporate the collaborative technology into the learning environment. A study conducted by the Consortium for School School Networking (CoSN), released

It Came From Hail

For a wide portion of the country, hail presents an additional weather challenge, one that can be extremely costly. Hail damage to roof assemblies within the United States and worldwide results in millions of dollars of economic loss each year.

Stretching Your Roofing Dollars With Metal Retrofit

In today's market, the cost of adding a sloped metal roof system over an existing roof is, in most cases, less than the cost of removing a flat roof, placing the removed materials in a landfill, and replacing it with a built-up roofing (BUR) or modif

It Came From Hail

Tests show how certain roofs hold up to hail storms.

Social Media Gone Wild

Some say that interactive Websites aimed at the college crowd have crossed a line — but just who isn't lying awake at night fretting this may startle you.

Is Your School Prepared?

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

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