
A Primedia Property
April 5, 2005	Vol. IV No. 50

On the Beat This Week:

What's News? reports on the continuing battle over the fate of the Ambassador Hotel building in Los Angeles...and other stories.
Stats Corner looks at preschool in California.
Feedback gives readers' comments about small school districts...and asks about suicide-prevention efforts on college campuses.
Construction Corner looks at projects in New Jersey, Illinois and Pennsylvania.
Bonds & Levies reports on elections in Texas.
Calendar gives a heads up on future conferences and events for school administrators and facilities managers.
Coming Up gives a preview of "A Good LEEDer," a story on sustainable design, in April's American School & University magazine.

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What's News
Hotel will remain standing until lawsuit is decided

The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to hold off on demolition work at the historic Ambassador Hotel until the district resolves a lawsuit with the Los Angeles Conservancy over the facility's fate. The Los Angeles Times reports that local organizations that want to save the hotel have alleged in a lawsuit that the district has not complied with state environmental requirements as it plans to build a school on the hotel site. The district wants to demolish most of the hotel and build a school for 4,200 students.

Teachers returned this week to Red Lake (Minn.) High School, two weeks after police say 16-year-old Jeff Weise fatally shot seven people there before killing himself. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that most of the teachers were returning to the building for the first time since the March 21 shootings. School officials hope to develop a plan this week to resume classes for high school and middle school students, who have not been in school since the shootings. High school students may wind up taking classes in the adjoining middle school building, or the high school may temporarily relocate to an abandoned school in the Bemidji (Minn.) school district. Elementary grade students will return to their schools next week.

In an effort to prevent suicides, New York University will restrict access to balconies in two residence halls. The New York Times reports that after five student suicides in about a year, NYU has taken several steps, including expanding counseling services and building plexiglass panels around the perimeter of the atrium in the university's Bobst Library, where two students jumped to their deaths. Together, the residence halls where balcony access has been restricted house more than 1,000 students.

Parents, faculty members and administrators in Washington, D.C., say the air quality in most of the 150 schools in the district is so bad that children simply cannot learn. The Washington Post reports that according to school officials, mechanical systems are not working properly in about half of the schools, and housekeeping is substandard in many. Seventy-one percent of D.C. school buildings are rated "poor" overall.

Want more of the latest news in education? Click here.

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Stats Corner
Reaping benefits

$2.62: The amount the state of California would benefit for every $1 invested in a universal preschool program for 4-year-olds.

Source: The Rand Corp., "The Economics of Investing in Universal Preschool Education in California"

New HVAC cooling technology helps schools save energy costs

A new generation of chillers can reduce school energy costs with the highest efficiency available in its size range. McQuay frictionless chillers operate with minimal sound levels for a quiet, productive learning environment. For a comparison of annual energy savings in four cities, read our Bulletin on frictionless chillers.

www.go.mcquay.com

Feedback
How small is too small?

Last week, we asked about Iowa looking at the possibility of setting minimum enrollments for school districts. Here is some of your feedback:

"What is wrong with a small school district?" says an architect from Pennsylvania. "It seems a dream come true. Are the taxpayers seeking relief? Certainly not from overcrowding! If it ain't broke don't fix it! If something specific isn't working, fix that. It's amazing how communities can solve their own problems without applying a statewide 'broad brush,' which tends to reduce everything to the least common denominator, serving no one."

"Let the Legislature size the districts," says a reader from New Jersey. "The business of local control is establishment lingo to protect jobs and fiefdoms."

"I agree in part that a minimum size needs to be established," says an administrator from Michigan. "School districts should be free to build and maintain their own districts if the people living in the district accept the responsibility for the entire cost of those facilities. If the community needs to go to the state for funding or backing of a loan, then they should have to prove that sharing a facility does not make sense logistically. In states like Michigan, where home rule is the law, that process is achieved more easily than in states where funding for schools is doled out by the state, but the effort should be made to achieve maximum use of all personnel and facilities."

This week, New York University is restricting access to balconies to make it more difficult for students to commit suicide. We want to know if you think restricting access to certain areas is an effective way to combat suicides on campus.

A. Yes. Colleges and universities should take steps to eliminate areas where students could make an impulsive decision to commit suicide.
B. No. Colleges should focus on offering counseling and guidance to help students deal with their problems.
C. Other.

What do you think?

E-mail your answer and any other comments HERE and we'll publish them in next week's Schoolhouse Beat.

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Construction Corner
Upgrades completed at New Jersey high school

Matawan Regional High School in Aberdeen, N.J., has completed a $10.8 million renovation. The Asbury Park Press says the improvements include modern science labs, renovated art classrooms and locker rooms, and new special-education classrooms. The school also has benefited from a new roof and windows, renovation of the school's main entrance, phone upgrades and new computer equipment. The architect is The Montoro Architectural Group.

DePaul University in Chicago is upgrading its athletic fields. The project will upgrade soccer and softball fields to ready the school for its move into the Big East Conference. The school will lengthen soccer fields so they will meet NCAA standards, and replace the grass surface with artificial turf. New seating for 800 spectators and a press box will be added to the soccer facilities. The softball field also will be enlarged, and bullpens and dugouts will be improved. The architect is Antunovich Associates.

The Derry Township School District in Hershey, Pa., is planning an addition to Hershey High School. The Harrisburg Patriot-News says the plan would add 18 to 21 classrooms to a second-story addition. The cafeteria would be expanded, and the building entrance would be reconfigured. The additional space is needed to alleviate crowding and accommodate higher enrollment. The architect is Bink Architectural Partnership.

Would you like to see your school construction project featured here? Send information via e-mail to Schoolhouse Beat .

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Bonds & Levies
Texas voters approve several bond proposals

Voters in four districts near Houston went to the polls over the weekend to decide the fate of bond proposals. The Houston Chronicle says that the districts won approval of more than $650 million in school projects:

The Humble district has won approval of a $342 million bond package. The request was divided into two propositions. Proposition 1 will provide $269.7 million for new school facilities, school sites, renovations, support facilities and equipment, instructional technology and capital improvements, and school buses. Proposition 2 will provide $72.3 million to pay for the district's sixth high school, a police department facility and stadium renovations.
In the Goose Creek district, voters have approved a $220.5 million bond package. It also was split into two propositions. Proposition 1 will provide $120 million to pay for new campuses or replacement of existing ones. Proposition 2 will provide $100.5 million to improve existing facilities.
The Dickinson district has won approval of two propositions on the ballot totaling $85 million. A $72 million proposal will provide funds for new elementary, middle and junior high schools, new transportation facilities, new buses and land for a new high school. Proposition 2 will provide $13 million for a new athletics stadium.
The Sweeny district has won approval of a $6 million bond issue for school improvements and maintenance. Projects include replacing the roof at Sweeny High School, upgrading the air-conditioning systems of all three district schools, repainting the campuses, installing new floors and buying new buses.

For more news on schools bonds and referendums, visit American School & University online.

Calendar
Upcoming events:

April 9-12: American Association of Community Colleges, annual conference, Boston

April 15-19: National Association of Elementary School Principals, 84th annual convention, Baltimore

April 16-19: National School Boards Association, annual conference, San Diego

April 20-23: The 49th annual CSI Show, Construction Specification Institute, Chicago

For more upcoming education-related events and conferences, visit our online calendar.

Coming Up
In April's American School & University magazine:
Education institutions have become leading proponents of sustainable design and construction practices. Driving their commitment is the desire to foster healthier learning environments, promote environmental stewardship and increase operational efficiency.

More K-12 and higher-education institutions are seeking certification under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, and they are looking to their architects, engineers and constructors to optimize the environmental performance of their projects, and deliver them in a timely and cost-effective manner....

Look for the entire article, "A Good LEEDer," in April's American School & University magazine or on the web.

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