Q&A: Back to School
Patrick Fiel, public safety advisor at ADT Security Systems, has more than 30 years of experience with security and law enforcement, including six years as executive director of school security for the Washington, D.C., public school system.
Get The Picture
Tough Economic Times May Call for Downsizing Facility Resources
School districts are committed to quality educational opportunities for all students. However, when district administrators are confronted with a tight economy, declining enrollment and decreased public funding, it becomes difficult for them to continue to operate all school buildings.
These tough economic times may require districts nationwide to downsize their school facilities. Downsizing and/or consolidating often allows districts to deal with declining enrollment and expected budget shortfalls.
Budget-Friendly Green Schools
I’m going to come right out and say it: Building a green school doesn’t have to cost a penny more. You’ve heard that green schools save money over time, reducing energy, water and even healthcare expenses. What you may not know is that, these days, a green school can be built for a price comparable to a conventionally designed facility.
I don’t have to prove it. Your peers have done it for me.
Q&A: Crisis Communications
Kenneth Trump, president of Cleveland-based consulting firm National School Safety and Security Services, has 25 years of experience at public and private schools in urban, suburban and rural settings. He has worked with jurisdictions in all 50 states and has authored several books and articles on school safety. He discussed the topic with School Construction News during a phone interview.
2009 Modular Building Awards
Every year the Modular Building Institute sponsors an awards program that recognizes the best projects in commercial modular building design and construction.
The ceremony to present the awards was held earlier this year during MBI’s annual convention and tradeshow in Las Vegas. Each entry was reviewed by a panel of industry and non-industry construction and code experts, architects and engineers, and marketing professionals.
A full list of awards and case studies are available at: www.modular.org/awards
Old Meets New at High School Renovation
Ted Howard remembers the good old days and the not so good old days at Seattle’s Garfield High School.
Since opening its doors in 1923, it has always been an ethnic melting pot unlike any other in the city — a place where students learned to accept and respect individual differences. At the height of the civil rights movement, it was the only Seattle venue where Martin Luther King, Jr. chose to speak.
Off the Shelf
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In the pursuit of knowledge, today’s students sometimes want to put their feet up and lounge with a café latte, while they express fresh epiphanies on a blog or live Internet chat as robotic arms pass research materials to them.
Cultural Exchange
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The school construction process is full of potential pitfalls, but projects become exponentially more complex when an American architectural firm works in a country that is thousands of miles away, where the language, culture and construction protocols are different.
Access for All
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GREENVILLE, S.C. — After years of struggling with access and mobility issues, officials at Greenville County Schools opened J.L. Mann High School, a magnet school that puts an emphasis on science and mathematics and can accommodate all of the district’s special-needs students.