They say there’s a first time for everything. For Lewistown Public Schools’ Maintenance Director Jason Fry, the old adage is certainly true.

Fry was a member of the first cohort to complete the Montana Facilities Director Apprenticeship Program through the state Department of Labor. After wrapping up the program on Oct. 31, Fry, along with public schools maintenance directors from, received his certificate of completion for the apprenticeship last month.

“It was a great opportunity,” Fry said. “I feel like this program could be really beneficial for the future of facilities directors in the state of Montana.”

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - It’s time for Vermont to start paying for school construction, according to House Speaker Jill Krowinski, D-Burlington.

Vermont has not supported school renovation projects since 2007 and many are in disrepair. Added to that are concerns about PCB contamination in a number of buildings that were built before 1980.

Krowinski says a study committee put forth recommendations on how the state can help and they’re on the table this upcoming session. “We want to look at a sustainable way to help support our schools,” she said. “I don’t think we have a choice at this point. I think the need is so great.”

She says a school construction bill would likely also incorporate PCB testing efforts.

With UNICEF's help, 1,000 classrooms at 192 schools can now stand up to a cyclone. Margarida, 15, witnessed her old school get destroyed by Cyclone Idai in 2019. Attending a climate-proof school, she says, has been life-changing.
A big part of UNICEF’s response to climate change is to blunt its impacts on children — especially those who are most vulnerable to them — through mitigation or adaptation measures.
This includes making systems children rely on — health, water, education — more climate-resilient. It means enabling these systems to stand up to extreme weather and other climate-driven disasters.
Mozambique is highly prone to cyclones and recurring floods. The weather system in that part of the world, the country's long coastline and the nine river basins flowing through it are contributing factors. Increasingly, so is climate change.
 

The Hawaii Department of Education has a new official responsible for overseeing campus facilities as it struggles to handle millions of dollars in capital improvement project funds. 

Audrey Hidano was appointed as interim assistant superintendent of the Office of Facilities and Operations last week, according to DOE’s website. Before joining the DOE earlier this year, Hidano served as deputy comptroller for the state Department of Accounting and General Services as well as deputy director of the Department of Transportation and the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations.

She was also co-founder of Hidano Construction Inc., which specialized in residential projects before it dissolved in 2016.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — It’s been an unusual school year for Southern Elementary School in Greensboro, N.C.
Earlier this school year, every book in its media center was thrown out after a cleaning of the carpet discovered mold.
“It’s just disappointing that maybe thousands of books were going away because of mold,” said Abby Hopper, a fifth-grader at the school.
Replacing an entire library’s books is not easy and not cheap. But the school was able to take advantage of a unique program in the nation’s capital.
In the basement of the historic Library of Congress in Washington is a little-known room that houses the Surplus Books Program.
Much of the collection is made up of extra books the Library of Congress' cataloging office and the copyright office receives from publishers.
Those books, of all different genres, are available to take for free.
The goal of the Surplus Books Program is to build library collections around the country and U.S. territories. Eligible groups can apply to participate in the program through the Library of Congress.
 

The holiday break offers time for the Guam Department of Education to roll up its sleeves and get back to fixing what they can at local schools.  A good plan, as students are out of the classroom. Now, meet some of the members that make up the small team working to get 41 public schools up to par.

Aging facilities, mold, and more. Ray Meno with GDOE told KUAM News when asked about the largest challenges for the very small team working on the campuses, “Getting materials and having enough man power to do the work and coordinating everything.”  

Meno has worked with the Facilities and Maintenance Divsion for 27 years.  KUAM linked up with him and his crew at Harry S. Truman in Santa Rita. The crew getting those materials like bathroom sinks, which must be ADA compliant, other requirements include installing exhaust fans in a restroom, along with lighting, and making sure bathroom stalls are at the proper height.

Supervisor John Palomo added, “You’re implementing standards now that we have to abide with  and we’re not prepared…so we’re trying to get prepared and we’re trying to get  whatever materials we need to start.” 

LORAIN — Lorain Schools’ “new” buildings aren’t looking so new, with maintenance needs making themselves known as some buildings hit the 15- to 20-year-old mark. 

The district has estimated a nearly $35 million price tag over the next five years to keep its facilities in working order — with everything from parking lots to HVAC systems now in need of routine maintenance, repair or replacement. 

But other issues are also making themselves known, like cracks in walls at Washington Elementary School. Those cracks point to potential structural issues in the 20-year-old space, and the storm in August highlighting potential inadequacies in the masonry. 

“You realize you don’t do anything to your house for 20 years and see what kind of shape it’s in,” Executive Director of Operations Mary Mayse said. 

At a school board meeting last month, Director of Operations Tony Dimacchia gave an overview of the projects he said the district needs to complete to maintain its buildings. Earlier this week, Dimacchia, Superintendent Jeff Graham and Mayse met with The Chronicle-Telegram about those upcoming costs. 

Montgomery County’s school system is asking teachers and other staff members to help with basic cleaning as it tries to hire more custodians.

But two school board members said that they do not see asking staff to take on extra work as the solution to an ongoing problem at the county’s 19 schools and associated facilities.

“As I have been saying for several years Montgomery County has to adjust our salary and benefits to be able to attract employees,” school board member Penny Franklin wrote in an email Wednesday. “Asking employees to work extra hours is not the answer and has caused concerns with many employees.”

Earlier this month, schools Human Resources Director Amanda Weidner emailed staff members to ask for help with a “special initiative” — working nights or weekends to clean school buildings. Pay for the extra work would start at $21.60 per hour and staff could put in two to eight hours per week, the email said.

RUMFORD — Mountain Valley High School opened its doors Wednesday to serve meals and provide clothing and toiletries to all area residents needing help due to the storm Monday.

Regional School Unit 10 schools in Rumford, Mexico, Buckfield and Sumner closed for the week on Tuesday because of electrical power outages and impassable roads in the district’s towns, administrators wrote on the district’s website.

RSU 10 Assistant Superintendent Matt Gilbert said by email to the Rumford Falls Times on Friday that he wanted to recognize several people “who have led the charge (and) who deserve to be recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty (at the high school).”

Gilbert listed staff including School Nutrition Director Jeannie LaPointe and her husband, Steve LaPointe, along with the MVHS “lunch ladies” staff, “(who) have been in the kitchen every day since the shelter opened to make sure people are being fed healthy meals.”

Maryland’s Interagency Commission on School Construction, or IAC, didn’t allocate any state funding to Buckingham Elementary’s replacement project in the agency’s preliminary 2025 capital improvement plan budget, but this could change once the budget is finalized in May. 

At a meeting over Zoom last Thursday, the IAC approved staff recommendations for preliminary allocations and planning approvals for the 75 percent authorization round of their 2025 capital improvement plan after hearing testimony from the leaders of several education agencies in Maryland. 

Superintendent of Worcester County Schools Lou Taylor, State Sen. Mary Beth Carozza (R-38) and County Commissioner President Chip Bertino testified for Buckingham’s construction funding. 

Today, House Appropriations Committee Majority Chairman Jordan Harris, D-Phila., hosted a news conference at South Philadelphia High School discussing school facilities funding in the 2023-24 state budget.

The budget includes $175 million for school facility improvements.

Pennsylvania has some of the oldest schools in the country. The average school building is around 70 years old and was built when lead pipes and asbestos were standard building materials.

Discoveries of asbestos and other toxins have led to school closures across the Commonwealth, including seven Philadelphia schools in 2023 alone. In the same year, 100 schools statewide closed due to excessive heat.

Harris stated that he believes this funding will help to address this issue that’s plagued Pennsylvania schools for a long time.

“This funding is paramount to improving the health and safety of our educators, students and school staff, Harris said. “This major Democratic priority is a significant investment and critical step toward ensuring that receiving an education in Pennsylvania does not equate to sick or injured students, teachers, or staff. There is more work to do, and we intend to continue our work until every Pennsylvania school is a safe learning environment for our children.”

Harris was joined by members of the Philadelphia House Delegation, including state Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Phila., and members of the House Appropriations and Education committees, including Education Committee Majority Chairman Peter Schweyer, D-Lehigh. 

Schweyer said this funding will allow schools to properly address issues with their facilities.

“For the first time in nearly a decade, the General Assembly has recognized the need for funding which allows school districts to address facility repairs and upgrades,” said Schweyer. “As a father of two in the Allentown School District, I have seen firsthand the need for funding so schools can provide the safe and comfortable learning environments that parents expect, and children deserve.”

Hawaii’s school superintendent is promising to reorganize his department to deal with a huge backlog of school construction projects.
The pressure is coming primarily from lawmakers, but public school advocates think the priorities may be misplaced. At Thursday’s meeting of the Hawaii Board of Education, teachers union president Osa Tui told members they should be asking tougher questions of school executives.
“The integrity of the department, which is overseen by this board, is on the line as legislators become increasingly distrustful of what they hear from the Department,” Tui said.
A day earlier at the state Capitol, state senators grilled Superintendent Keith Hayashi over about $2 billion in unspent construction dollars, including nearly half a billion in dollars that could be lapsed — and taken off the books — after missing construction deadlines.
State Sen. Donna Kim said she was shocked that Hayashi didn’t learn about the lapsing projects until late November.
“It’s it’s crazy that you folks are not aware of like the billion dollars’ worth of projects that’s sitting there and you don’t have all the funding,” Kim said.
Molokai and East Maui Sen. Lynne DeCoite said lawmakers can’t assume that projects they’ve approved and funded are making progress.
 

A federal grand jury’s investigation into how contracts were awarded through the state’s school construction grant program has quietly continued in recent months, with four detailed subpoenas issued this year — two as recently as October.

The subpoenas, as well as two previously undisclosed from 2022, seek phone records, emails and calendar entries of as many as 16 state employees, according to the attorney who reviews Freedom of Information Act requests concerning subpoenas.

All names in the subpoenas are redacted, except for Konstantinos “Kosta” Diamantis, the former state representative who became the head of the state’s school construction program and a deputy secretary at the Office of Policy and Management. Diamantis retired in late 2021.

Diamantis declined to comment for this story. A spokesperson for Gov. Ned Lamont’s office also declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation.

CELINA - The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission has agreed to pitch in an additional $7.87 million toward Celina City School's building project, upping its total contribution to about $59 million.

School board members at this week's regular meeting signed off on a number of resolutions related to the building project, including one accepting the additional state dollars.

The extra funds were released to help the district with rising construction costs, according to superintendent Ken Schmiesing. They can be applied to the entire project - the consolidated pre-K-sixth grade facility under construction and the 7-12 grade building set to start going up this summer.

"They're working with us because they definitely want to see us have the success in getting the building completed," Schmiesing told The Daily Standard.

As part of the agreement with OFCC, the local share of the project will increase by $9.7 million.

The Rhode Island Council on Elementary and Secondary Education approved over $1 billion in new school construction projects across Rhode Island.

The funding will go to 48 projects benefiting almost 25,000 students, including construction of seven new and like-new schools, according to Rhode Island Department of Education. This is the largest school construction approval in Rhode Island K-12 history.

“The council’s approval of these school construction projects sets the tone for prioritizing students’ year-round learning, while ensuring they are in state-of-the-art facilities,” said Gov. Dan McKee. “I commend their approval of these investments in Rhode Island students and future generations and look forward to seeing the positive impact of these new projects statewide.”

Notable projects include a new South Kingstown High School, two new PK-8 school in Providence, one new unified high school in Pawtucket and a new Mount Hope High School in Bristol-Warren, RIDE said.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, introduced legislation Monday that would devote $1 billion over the next four years for Impact Aid Construction Grants to ease the backlog of facility needs at federally impacted school districts.
A companion bill was introduced in the House by Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif.
“Federal Impact Aid provides critical funding for federally impacted schools,” said Hirono, co-chair of the Senate Impact Aid Coalition, in a statement released on Monday. “But too often, that funding is not enough to meet maintenance needs. By providing $1 billion for needed upgrades, this legislation will enable schools to address the significant backlog of school construction, repair and maintenance needs to help our students learn in a suitable learning environment.” 
Under the Impact Aid Infrastructure Partnership Act, 25% of funding would be made available via formula funding to all eligible school districts. The U.S. Department of Education would disburse the remaining 75% as competitive grants with priority given to those school districts with acute emergencies in their facilities.
 

Nampa school board trustees embraced tearful district patrons after a Monday vote to close four schools. 
The proposal was years in the making but drew significant attention in recent weeks as trustees neared a decision spurred by looming maintenance needs and declining enrollment. 
The Nampa School District has lost roughly 2,000 students over the last decade and faces hundreds of millions of dollars in needed building repairs. District staff proposed closing schools with the smallest number of students to limit costs, and trustees signed-off Monday.
“We live here, in your community, we’re your friends,” board chairwoman Brook Taylor said during the school board meeting. “It truly is a hard choice, and each of us have worked very hard to get to this place.”
An emotional Taylor hugged patrons who wore West Middle School gear, after trustees voted to close West and three other schools at the end of the school year. West, which opened in 1972, will be repurposed to host Union School and Nampa Academy, two non-traditional schools currently housed in aging buildings. 
Centennial, Greenhurst and Snake River elementaries are also closing. The Centennial building will be decommissioned, and possibly torn down, while Greenhurst will host the district’s pre-school and online programs and Snake River will be retrofitted to house Gateways, Nampa’s alternative school for at-risk students. 
 

Thirteen Jackson Public Schools are closing or being merged.

The JPS Board of Trustees made it official in a 5-1 vote Tuesday evening after months of deliberations and community forums discussing the optimization plan. Board Member Cynthia Thompson, who represents Ward 6, was the only one opposed. She was in tears after the vote.

"Jackson Public Schools is at an inflection point. If we don't take action right now, we could jeopardize the entire district," Superintendent Errick Greene told the board before the vote. "As hard as it might be, it's time. It's time to take action."

Thompson called for an amendment before the vote to remove Wingfield High School from the list of schools to be closed. But the amendment failed in a 3-3 vote.

A jury in Washington state this week ordered one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies to pay more than $850 million to a small group of parents and children after finding that they suffered exposure to highly toxic chemicals in a school building.

The lawsuit concerns the Sky Valley Education Center, part of the school district in Monroe, Wash. Dozens of adults and children have said they experienced debilitating illnesses after spending time there during the 2010s.

On Dec. 19, a jury in King County Superior Court ordered Bayer, which owns the company that manufactured the chemicals in question, to pay $73 million in compensatory damages and an additional $784 million in punitive damages to seven parents and children who were exposed at Sky Valley.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- You may not think much about the water your kids are drinking when they're in school, but maybe you should.

The 7 On Your Side Investigates team found that 43% of schools in New York and 56% of schools in New Jersey had water outlets test beyond the recommended maximum amount for lead in drinking water, according to the most recent reporting data.

Lead is particularly harmful to children - even low levels of exposure have been linked to learning disabilities, stunting of physical growth and damage to the nervous system.

In our viewing area in New Jersey, we found the Toms River School District had the highest number of outlets - 56 - test beyond the Environmental Protection Agency's acceptable limit for lead.

The Superintendent told Eyewitness News some of the water outlets were not used for drinking and if they were used for drinking they were shut off as a result of the testing results