School districts frequently expand existing campuses to accommodate enrollment growth, modern educational programs and aging infrastructure. In lieu of constructing entirely new replacement facilities, additions and annexes often provide a more practical and cost-effective solution for increasing capacity — particularly when projects require specialized spaces such as science labs, modern kitchens, locker rooms and other MEP-intensive areas. 

While the race for governor and US Senate continues to dominate the airwaves in Michigan, flying under the radar are more than 100 ballot questions to raise money for schools.

Forty-two districts are asking voters to approve school bonds on Tuesday's ballot, according to Gongwer News Service.

CARROLLTON, Ga. — Technology providers GeoComm and Georgia-based SchoolDog announced a partnership aimed at helping K–12 school districts strengthen safety preparedness.

The collaboration combines GeoComm’s mapping technology with SchoolDog’s safety management software to integrate campus mapping with daily district operations.

The partnership links mapping context with routine safety management in school environments.

A decadelong economic boom has transformed Jersey City’s Paulus Hook neighborhood into one of the most desirable in the city. But the influx of new families has led to chronic and often chaotic overcrowding at P.S. 16, the elementary school that serves the area.

Toddlers in the school’s Pre-K program have to be bused throughout the city because the building has no room for them. District leaders have said for years that busing pre-K students to other city schools was a temporary solution. But next year, all of the kindergartners at the school — which serves students through the fifth grade — will be bused to other locations as well. The issue has become a constant complaint from frustrated parents speaking at school board and City Council meetings, and it’s become a key issue in Jersey City’s pivotal and crowded school board election.

Providence, R.I. — Providence's next round of school construction would turn more buildings into pre-K-through-8 schools and combine two schools into one, according to a presentation to the City Council's Special Committee on Ways and Means at Tuesday night's meeting. The committee did not vote on the plan, and its members will see contract amendments for it later, according to the Providence Special Committee on Ways and Means' published meeting recording.

The revised plan covers Phase 4, the newest part of the city's school building program. Christopher Spiegel, project executive and managing director of the firm overseeing Phase 4, told the committee that the School Building Committee and the Providence School Board had approved the plan unanimously. He described it as still proposed because the council controls the design-build contracts that must be amended before construction money can flow.

The Board of Education voted 6-1 on Thursday, Oct. 29, to approve up to $200 million in renovation projects at four Philadelphia schools, the first projects in the district’s 10-year facilities plan, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Board member Whitney Jones voted no, according to the Inquirer.

Earlier in the day, City Council members, union leaders and students rallied outside district headquarters and called on Mayor Cherelle Parker to stop the planned closure of 17 schools, Chalkbeat Philadelphia and the Inquirer reported.

Repairing roofs, bathrooms and gymnasium floors. Removing asbestos, mold and lead pipes. Modernizing labs and classrooms.

These are among the repairs and projects school districts around the state are citing in their bid to convince voters to approve school bond measures. But a shaky economy could factor into how many will pass, experts say.

Voters in 82 California school districts across 40 of the state’s 58 counties will decide a combined $12.6 billion in school bonds, the standard way schools borrow money for capital improvement and construction projects. School bonds require a 55% majority of votes to pass. 

The Guam Office of Public Accountability has initiated an analysis of the Guam Department of Education’s school facilities and student enrollment to assess whether existing school facilities are appropriately aligned with the number of students being served.

The analysis will cover all operating GDOE school facilities and student enrollment through School Year 2024–2025.

Its preliminary objective is to determine whether the current student population aligns with the number, capacity, and utilization of existing school facilities, and whether decommissioning, consolidation, repurposing, or other alternatives may be necessary.

Special education staffing is typically treated as a recruiting, funding or training challenge. Those factors are only part of the challenge. Districts also need to ask whether teachers and paraprofessionals have the right spaces to do the job.

During the 2024-25 school year, 45 states reported special education teacher shortages, according to the Learning Policy Institute. Facilities alone will not solve that shortage, but the school environment can either support special education staff or make an already demanding role harder to sustain.

RICHMOND, Va. — When a chiller at Barack Obama Elementary School broke down in May, school officials said it caused conditions that resulted in mold growth over the summer. The mold was so severe that it delayed the start of school in August by 9 days.

As a Staples student, I believe that students at other schools should have the same opportunities that we have. A safe building, working equipment and classrooms that can support the same level of learning as anywhere else. Still, the funding for Westhill High School’s new building raises a question worth asking: How does Connecticut decide how much each community pays?

According to the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services, the cost of the new school in Westhill is projected to be $446 million, while the state will provide 80% reimbursement, which totals $356.8 million state grant. The 450,000 square feet facility is expected to open its doors in August 2029.

For decades, Idaho schools followed a familiar playbook for running ballot measures.

Bonds were to build new buildings. Plant-facilities levies were for big repairs or remodels, like replacing a boiler or a roof. And supplemental levies were to expand or add programs like shop classes and athletics.

There would be major implications if Wake County voters reject the $680 million school construction bond referendum on Election Day.

The school bond would provide much of the funding for a $832 million building program that includes three new schools, major renovations at nine schools and a variety of other projects, including HVAC and security upgrades.

A state legislative subcommittee on Monday approved a plan to hire an expert to study a new school funding formula for Virginia, with up to 24 months to complete the work.

The decision continues lawmakers’ work to update the state’s 52-year-old funding formula, which determines the Standards of Quality, or funding level for public schools. A December 2023 study showed that Virginia local governments spend far more on K-12 education than the state, underscoring the need for a clearer approach.

In a polarized political climate in which Democrats and Republicans often emphasize their differences, the two parties in Wythe County have found common ground on an issue that might seem unlikely to unite them: raising taxes.

Both the county’s Republican and Democratic parties have endorsed a proposed 1% sales tax increase to help pay for more than $72 million in school construction and renovation projects. Their support comes as voters across Virginia prepare to decide whether their communities should adopt the same tax to address mounting school facility needs.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) today announced a funding opportunity of up to $100 million to help public school districts reduce facility operating costs, improve the reliability of essential building systems, and develop financeable improvement plans that maximize public and private investments.

TRENTON, N.J. — October 27, 2026 — The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) today announced the closeout of the Schools and Small Business Energy Efficiency Stimulus (SSB) Program, a five-year initiative that obligated $179.2 million of a federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) appropriation across 364 projects. To date, $166.2 million has been paid out, and final payments on 19 projects are under way.

“With nearly $180 million in federal funds committed, this program transitioned schools and small businesses from outdated systems to verified, code-compliant HVAC and plumbing upgrades,” said NJBPU President Ben Hertz-Shargel. “The result is better indoor air quality and lower operating costs that will persist beyond the program’s closeout.”

The Detroit district expects to have around $258.5 million in funding that may be used to fund long-sought school upgrades starting next year.

Bringing libraries back to 89 schools is among the proposals the Detroit Public Schools Community District board is considering. If the board approves the plan in the coming months, the libraries could be partially open by fall 2027, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said.

In a polarized political climate in which Democrats and Republicans often emphasize their differences, the two parties in Wythe County have found common ground on an issue that might seem unlikely to unite them: raising taxes.

Both the county’s Republican and Democratic parties have endorsed a proposed 1% sales tax increase to help pay for more than $72 million in school construction and renovation projects. Their support comes as voters across Virginia prepare to decide whether their communities should adopt the same tax to address mounting school facility needs.

More trees. More shade. Healthier schoolyards. 

October 26, 2026 – CAL FIRE officials report that nearly 2.6 million California students attend schools where trees cover 5% or less of the areas where they play and spend time outdoors (according to a new EdSource analysis).

We’re helping change that. Since 2022, California has invested more than $156 million through CAL FIRE’s Green Schoolyards program, supporting projects at more than 215 campuses and helping plant thousands of trees in communities across the state.