School Buildings

When we think about schools, we often picture classrooms filled with eager learners, playgrounds buzzing with energy, and parent-teacher meetings fostering community connections. Schools are where friendships bloom and communities thrive. But behind all the learning and fun, there’s a less visible but crucial aspect of school life: maintaining the buildings themselves.

While students and teachers get a break during the summer, school buildings don’t. They continue to age, and maintenance needs never take a vacation. This is especially true for older, classic school buildings that have been part of the community for generations. Keeping these structures “fit” for learning requires thoughtful planning and consistent effort, which Doug McCarthy talks about in For The Love of Schools.

Maintenance Challenges

Every year brings new questions for school administrators. Can the roof hold up for another year? Are classrooms too hot or too cold? Is the building prepared for emergencies? Sometimes, the answer means investing in renovations, while other times, creative solutions are needed to repurpose existing spaces.

School leaders also grapple with practical concerns: Where will students go if their building becomes unusable? How can they retain talented teachers if working conditions are less than ideal? Poor indoor air quality, outdated HVAC systems, and failing infrastructure can impact not just comfort but also academic performance and public perception.

A study of the public schools in Washington, DC indicated that only 10% of the 137 schools in the District of Columbia were in good condition, and 75% were in poor condition, according to DC Voice Ready Schools Project 2007.

Matt Bostian, Director of Operations at Austintown Local School District, knows these challenges well. Reflecting on his time overseeing two school districts, he shared how older buildings, though seemingly fine from the outside, often hide significant issues. Aging roofs, outdated electrical systems, and neglected HVAC units create a snowball effect when maintenance is deferred. The cost of putting off repairs often outweighs the price of consistent upkeep.

One district where he worked faced overcrowded elementary and middle schools, leading to the addition of temporary classroom trailers. The high school, while still structurally sound, was outdated and in need of upgrades. As technology advanced, the schools’ older systems struggled to keep up. Roofing projects were delayed, electrical panel updates postponed, and HVAC improvements neglected. Eventually, the cost of deferred maintenance became overwhelming.

Fortunately, the district passed a levy to build a new K-12 facility, which included dedicated funds for ongoing maintenance. Without this investment, the older schools would have continued to strain the budget and impact the student experience.

Cities such as New York will require approximately $680 million to address the problem of deferred maintenance for needed painting, roofing, and exterior brickwork, according to a 2004 study conducted by Lunenberg and Ornstein.

How ARC Facilities Supports School Maintenance

To address these preventive maintenance challenges, K-12 school districts are increasingly turning to solutions like ARC Facilities. By leveraging ARC’s technology, schools can efficiently document equipment changes, map assets, and capture institutional knowledge, ensuring that maintenance teams have immediate access to critical building information when they need it most. This proactive approach helps schools address issues before they escalate, maintain safer learning environments, and avoid costly repairs.

ARC Facilities also streamlines the process of managing maintenance records. Instead of sifting through paper documents, facility managers can instantly retrieve equipment manuals, maintenance logs, and asset maps through a mobile device. This means faster responses during emergencies and less downtime when addressing routine maintenance.