The non-profit Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) recently launched an effort to develop industry-backed best practices for school modernization projects.
The Minor Renovations Program aims to fill a void of guiding criteria for school districts to use to ensure improvements meet a high-performance threshold. CHPS is assembling a coalition of interdisciplinary experts in design, performance, student health and wellness, technology, and products, along with school district leaders to:
- Develop best practices that underpin new design criteria
- Pilot improvements at schools to demonstrate their effectiveness
- Develop and demonstrate financing solutions that show how allocated funds can be more effectively used for better performance outcomes
- Create and grow a community of support for schools
Two of the country’s largest school districts, Los Angeles Unified and the Cypress-Fairbanks ISD (Harris County, Texas), will participate in the program at the outset, and more districts are expected to join in the future.
“It’s estimated that 53% of America’s public schools need to invest in repairs, renovations, and modernizations, yet upgrades are not getting done at the rate or scale needed to provide safe and productive learning environments for students,” according to a CHPS news release. “Although smaller renovation projects represent the majority of districts’ facility expenditures, a set of industry-aligned best practices does not exist to enable effective planning and implementation.”
Related Stories
| Sep 2, 2014
Ranked: Top green building sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
AECOM, Gensler, and Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms.
| Aug 27, 2014
Study looks at lessons from involving children in K-12 school design
A study examining what architects can learn from children, especially during the design process, is being carried out through the University of Sheffield's school of architecture.
| Aug 14, 2014
8 do's and don'ts for completing an HVAC life cycle cost assessment
There are many hurdles to overcome when completing a life cycle cost assessment. RMF Engineering’s Seth Spangler offers some words of advice regarding LCCAs.
| Aug 14, 2014
Life cycle cost analysis using energy modeling
A life cycle cost analysis helps a school district decide which HVAC system to use in $198 million worth of future building projects.
| Aug 5, 2014
K-12 School Sector Giants: Pent-up demand finally produces movement in schools market [2014 Giants 300 Report]
After a long period of anemic performance, with growth mostly driven by renovations and additions, the K-12 sector is showing renewed interest in new construction, according to BD+C's 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction market benefits from improving economy, new technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Following years of fairly lackluster demand for commercial property remodeling, reconstruction revenue is improving, according to the 2014 Giants 300 report.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Construction Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Structure Tone, Turner, and Gilbane top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction contractor and construction management firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Jacobs, URS, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.
| Jul 28, 2014
Reconstruction Sector Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Stantec, HDR, and HOK top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest reconstruction architecture and architecture/engineering firms in the U.S.
| Jul 23, 2014
Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June
AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.
