On a Sunday morning last month, James Taq'ac Amik was huddled on a small bridge with his girlfriend. At 4 a.m., they had scrambled into an 18-foot aluminum motor boat, fleeing floodwaters from a massive storm surge that inundated Kipnuk, a village of 700 people in the heart of western Alaska's sprawling Kuskokwim river delta.

"I couldn't make it up. I tried, but the wind was too strong to try and go by boat, so we ended up staying on the bridge for five hours," Amik said. Things only grew more dramatic. "The houses started drifting away around 5:30 a.m.," Amik said. "There was still lights in them, there was people in them."

When they set out, the couple was planning to head to Kipnuk's public school, the largest building in the Alaska Native Yup'ik village. At least that building, they hoped at the time, would be secure.

The local school district is seeking public input about whether its long-term plans should include a major renovation of Harpswell’s only public school or closing the school and busing Harpswell students to another town.

The option of closure is hypothetical, part of a broader discussion about the district’s long-range facilities master plan. Maine School Administrative District 75 — serving Harpswell, Topsham, Bowdoin and Bowdoinham — is holding a series of public forums to gather feedback.

Two meetings already took place at Mt. Ararat High School, in Topsham, on Sept. 22 and Oct. 20. A third and final public forum to gather residents’ feedback is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 17, at the high school.

Harpswell Community School is the town’s only public school. West Harpswell School closed in 2011. A charter school called Harpswell Coastal Academy operated in the former West Harpswell School for 10 years before closing in 2023.

Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) has completed almost half of the 48 districtwide maintenance projects slated for completion between 2024 and 2026.

That’s according to a report shown at Thursday night’s board meeting highlighting the finished upgrades and upcoming repairs across several of RUSD’s campuses.

“I’ve been with the district for 29 years and, [in] all of those years, we’ve done maybe three [or] four projects [per year] and we were very proud of that,” Reggie Royster, the district’s director of maintenance, operations and transportation told the board at the November 6 meeting. “[But] 21 projects in a year, that is incredible.”

Reliable heating performance is essential to keeping schools and campuses safe, comfortable, and focused on learning. For education facilities teams, preparation before the first deep freeze isn’t just about mechanical systems—it’s about ensuring that students, educators, and staff can go about their days without disruption.

When freezing temperatures arrive, classrooms, residence halls, cafeterias, and offices all depend on heating systems that deliver consistent warmth from the first cold morning onward. Yet too often, the first blast of winter reveals boilers, pumps, and controls that were not fully prepared. The result can be cold classrooms, frustrated occupants, and emergency repair calls that interrupt instruction and strain resources.

The key to avoiding these issues is a proactive, structured approach to heating readiness. By combining preventive maintenance, testing, and ongoing operational awareness, education facilities professionals can enter the season confident that their facility’s heating assets—and the learning environments they care for—will perform when needed most.

Fort Myers Beach Mayor Dan Allers has proposed to the Lee County school district that the Fort Myers Beach Elementary School be turned over to the town to be operated as a municipal charter school and that the school district provide the town $12 million to build a new municipal charter school. The proposal was made at the end of today’s mediation session between the town and school district at St. Leo the Great Catholic Church in Bonita Springs.

Allers asked the school district’s administration and school board member Bill Ribble during the mediation meeting to lease the school to the town for $1 for 100 years for the town to operate a municipal charter school out of the historic school while the town builds a new elementary school building to be used as a municipal charter school.

MIDDLETON, Idaho — After yet another failed attempt to pass a school levy, Middleton School District may still have a path forward to build its long-awaited new elementary school—this time, without raising local taxes.
Related | Middleton School District levy would prevent teacher cuts while adding two armed officers to schools
“Our levy didn't pass, obviously disappointed that it didn't pass,” said Superintendent Marc Gee. “There's any number of reasons why that happened, but what it comes down to is we put it out there to our patrons and they said no.”
Just days before Tuesday’s election, the district was approved for $11.1 million from the Public School Facilities Cooperative Fund, a state program that helps school districts build or repair facilities when they can’t raise funds locally.
The district plans to combine that $11 million with $8 million in state modernization funds, which together would cover roughly two-thirds of the cost to build a new elementary school.
 

More than half of Minnesota school districts that asked voters to approve operating levies and bond questions to pay for K-12 education costs got the support they were looking for this election cycle. 

“I think our districts made the case” for more local funding, said Kirk Schneidawind, executive director of the Minnesota School Boards Association. “Minnesotans are very, very proud of their local public schools.”

Districts across the state rely on a mix of federal, state and local money to fund school personnel salaries, technology purchases, building upkeep and renovations and other education programming costs. But increasing numbers of districts are turning to local tax dollars to fund larger portions of their budgets. 

This week nearly 100 school funding questions were on Minnesota ballots. Sixty-three percent of those were approved. 

Nearly 70 percent of operating levies passed and 64 percent of capital project questions passed. Fewer bond questions — which tend to be heftier sums of money invested in things like new school buildings — passed with only a 52 percent approval rating. 

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cleveland Schools expects to close 23 buildings and operate 29 fewer schools under a sweeping restructuring plan that would amount to the district’s largest overhaul in decades.

Cleveland Metropolitan School District CEO Warren Morgan said the changes are necessary to confront steep drops in enrollment, rising operating costs and a looming $150 million deficit. Changes would take effect before the 2026-2027 school year.

The plan, introduced to the school board Wednesday night, would save CMSD at least $30 million annually if approved. Those savings would mostly come from the district cutting administrative staff, including principals and assistant principals, on account of reducing the number of schools.

Morgan told cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer that the number of teachers should stay roughly the same as CMSD’s footprint shrinks, but some layoffs and new hires may occur, as the schools need different personnel.

FERNDALE — The Ferndale School Board approved the city’s Capital Facilities Plan during its Oct. 28 meeting. The plan looks at needed and planned projects, both with and without funding. 

Between 2025-2032 there is about $40 million in planned minor capital renovations. These would be funded through the district’s general fund, impact fees, a potential capital facilities levy, bonds and grants. 

Ferndale School District is facing a deficit in classroom space when looking over a 20-year period, especially at the elementary level. 

According to Assistant Superintendent for Business and Support Services Mark Deebach, the new high school brings in possibilities and flexibility in addressing potential space issues at the high school level.

Due to this deficit there is about $150 million in major unfunded capital projects. 

In 2030, the transportation building will need to be remodeled and a new North Bellingham Elementary School will need to be built. 

The transportation building was initially slated for work with the 2006 bond attempt, but never happened and the building has only worsened with time. According to Deebach, some busses do not fit in the shop.

AMHERST, Wis. (WSAW) - Sixth-grade science students at Amherst Middle School are ditching textbooks for hands-on learning as they work to reduce their school’s energy consumption.

It’s part of the Renew Our Schools Challenge, a competition involving eight Wisconsin schools. For five weeks, the sixth graders work to create the most ways to lower energy bills in their building.

Last year was Amherst’s first time in the competition, where they placed third, but students noticed several areas for improvement, including overuse of lights, heat and electronics.

“We plugged a watt meter into a desktop computer, and we found that there was a ton of vampire load being taken there. So, it’s essentially an appliance that’s plugged in that still uses energy even though it’s off,” said Margo Smith, a science teacher at Amherst Middle School.

In Fayetteville, AR, parents at McNair Middle and Vandergriff Elementary are voicing concern after a cell tower was built directly on school property, specifically on a playground, according to KFSM-TV Students call it an eyesore and say it’s eating into their play space. But parents, like Courtney Norton, worry about something bigger: radiation exposure.

“We had no idea it would be placed right where kids play,” Norton said. “We’re worried about both short-term and long-term effects, especially on developing children.”

Radiation oncologist Dr. Foster Lasley says while most tower radiation is non-ionizing, newer 5G frequencies raise questions, particularly for children whose bodies are still developing. “I’m not sure it’s a great idea to put this right next to a school,” Lasley said. 

States like California require towers to be at least 3,000 feet from schools. Norton says Fayetteville has no such rule, leaving the tower “on the playground and next to an elementary school.”

VERMILION, Ohio — Vermilion voters rejected a 30-year, $47 million school bond levy Tuesday, leaving the district’s long-delayed maintenance projects – including leaking roofs, failing HVAC systems and deteriorating infrastructure – in limbo.

Issue 25 failed with 59.74% of voters rejecting it, according to unofficial results from the Lorain County Board of Elections.

Vermilion Local School District hadn’t asked voters for an operating levy since 2008 and has relied on its general fund for capital repairs—a strategy officials have acknowledged is unsustainable. The general fund is primarily allocated for teacher and staff salaries and benefits, with just 24% available for other needs. Without dedicated funding, routine maintenance problems have compounded into an estimated $14 million in critical repairs.

McALLEN — The district held a town hall meeting on Oct. 28 and presented information on the state of its school buildings, which are in need of repairs or expansions, in preparation for a possible $335 million bond that officials say won’t increase a tax rate.
The McAllen school district partnered up with MGT, an education facilities consultant, on systematically looking at each building’s age, infrastructure and other areas. The report also collected feedback from the district’s Facilities Forecast Advisory Committee, which is made up of school officials, parents and community members.
The report presented at UTRGV McAllen ISD Collegiate Academy is about 160 slides long and goes over the methodology from MGT, a demographics overview, enrollment projections, schools capacity and utilization, and, most importantly, the district-wide conditions overview with specific findings and the cost summary.
 

North East Independent School District is asking voters to consider its first bond in 10 years, but unlike many other recent proposals across the region, this one doesn’t fund new schools. Instead, it focuses on maintaining and upgrading existing campuses.

It all started with a costly equipment issue at Madison High School. In 2021, the chillers needed replacing.

“Those chillers at Madison were on R-22 refrigerant, which started getting phased out in 2003 and then became obsolete in 2010, so they couldn't be repaired. They had to be replaced,” said Superintendent Sean Maika with North East ISD.

Maika says that's when the district started considering a bond package, which led to the $495 million proposal on the ballot this week

“This bond isn't about building new, it's about maintaining the investment that our community has made over time,” Maika said.

The Eastern Local School District is reproposing a tax levy for school renovations to avoid funding cuts within the schools.

According to Eastern Superintendent, Nick Dettwiller, the schools’ facilities including lighting, HVAC, roofs, plumbing, windows, and mechanical systems are nearly 30 years old. Replacing the elementary school’s roof alone would cost over $2 million, which represents 65% of the district’s general fund balance at the end of the school year.

Eastern was given a plan from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission for a $35 million renovation plan for both buildings:

State Share: 75% (approximately $26.5 million)
Local Share: 25% (approximately $9.4 million)
Maintenance Requirement: an additional 0.5 mill levy for long-term upkeep.

The plan takes advantage of a state partnership program that may not be available again. If the levy is not approved, the funding will be given to another district that can pass a levy for their local share.

NORTH SMITHFIELD – Parents and volunteers say new insurance requirements are shutting community programs out of local schools, with youth leagues and booster clubs struggling to afford coverage to use town fields and gyms.

At last Tuesday’s School Committee meeting, resident Valerie Fleury said the district’s building-use rules have become so restrictive that fundraisers, senior projects, and after-school activities are being canceled outright.

“This issue is having a significant negative impact on our community,” said Fleury, who spoke on behalf of 17 groups including the North Smithfield Athletic Association, Music Education Association, and Youth Soccer. “There are very few groups in town that are not being negatively impacted.”

The vast majority of urban, public grade schools in California are paved-over “nature deserts” sorely lacking in trees or shade — leaving most of the state’s 5.8 million school-age children to bake in the sun during breaks from the classroom as rising global temperatures usher in more dangerous heat waves.

That’s the conclusion by a team of California researchers from UCLA, UC Davis and UC Berkeley who studied changes in the tree cover at 7,262 urban public schools across the Golden State from 2018 through 2022.

The ongoing joint project, which drew from urban tree canopy maps developed by study partners the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the U.S. Forest Service, revealed that 85% of the schools lost about 1.8% of tree cover on average in that time span.

The situation appears to be just as worrisome today, the team said.

The researchers also collaborated with the nonprofit Green Schoolyards America, which found in its own 2024 study that California’s public K-12 schoolyards have a median tree cover of just 6.4%. And more than half of that canopy exists only as decoration at school entrances, in parking lots and along campus perimeters.

Governor Ned Lamont, Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz, and Department of Administrative Services (DAS) Commissioner Michelle Gilman today announced the launch of a new, interactive data visualization dashboard showcasing the State of Connecticut’s School Construction Grant Program. 

The dashboard, hosted on the state’s open data portal, provides an accessible, transparent view of school construction projects across Connecticut. Since Fiscal Year 2020, the state has awarded 314 grants totaling nearly $4 billion to districts to build, expand, and modernize school facilities. 

“Providing funding for modern, safe, and inspiring schools is one of the smartest investments we can make for Connecticut’s children, teachers and families," Governor Lamont said. "Every school building project represents an opportunity for students to learn, for educators to succeed, and for communities to grow. This dashboard gives residents a clear view of how the state is supporting that progress and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to transparency and accountability.” 

The launch event took place at the new Cromwell Middle School, a $69 million project supported by the state through a 49.64% reimbursement rate, resulting in an estimated $34 million state grant. The Cromwell project exemplifies the strong partnership between state and local governments in providing safe, modern learning environments for students. 

“Today’s launch is about more than numbers; it’s about school facilities that meet the needs of our students and educators,” said Lt. Governor Bysiewicz. “In this new dashboard, residents can see how state dollars are improving schools in their communities. Since FY2020, Connecticut has invested almost $4 billion in school buildings. The Cromwell Middle School project is the perfect example of what happens when state and local partners work together.” 

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — In the southwest part of Grand Island, developing -- including housing -- continues to be built.

What does this mean for the city as it goes 5, 10, 15 even 25 years into the future? It's a question Grand Island Public Schools is working to answer as part of a master facilities plan.

Grand Island Public Schools said data shows Grand Island could grow by up to 20,000 people by 2050. Superintendent Matt Fisher said this would lead to an increase in students.

“So, when you start breaking that down, what does that mean for our preschool? What does that mean for our elementaries? What does that mean for our MS and what happens with our high school as that growth happens?" Fisher said. "That’s really what we are trying to position ourselves for and to really think about. What will we need 25 years from now?”

To address its facilities needs with a growing population, GIPS plans to undergo a facilities master plan where the district will gather feedback from stakeholders to hear what they want to see when it comes to schools.

Dive Brief:
Following a win in Arizona by low-income school districts over built-in state disparities in facilities funding, plaintiffs have sued California over something similar. A group of students, parents and advocacy organizations are contending the state’s reliance on local bond financing to meet the bulk of school facilities’ capital needs systematically widens the gap between have and have-not districts.
“State funding for modernization of aging school facilities … provides more funding to wealthy districts based on their local wealth, enabling them to meet local funding requirements more easily, which in turn qualifies them for more state bond matching funds,” say the plaintiffs in the complaint, filed Oct. 23 with the California Superior Court in Alameda County.
The funding gap violates the equal protection and education clauses of the state’s constitution, the plaintiffs say. The lawsuit seeks to rewrite the funding formula so it’s more needs-based and less reliant on how successful, and how quickly, districts are in generating their share of the funds.