The impact of their physical environment on student success is a concept that didn’t receive much attention until the last few decades. But poor conditions can lead to increased truancy, vandalism and bullying, a lack of focus for students and high teacher turnover.
When facilities are well-maintained and obsolete structures make way for retrofits or newer buildings with technological advances, improvements on student outcomes will follow, according to several national studies.
Gwinnett County school officials are keeping that in mind as they undertake a multimillion-dollar program of school construction and maintenance this year.
As the largest district in the state, Gwinnett County experienced a construction boom in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Averaging about five new schools a year, it needed to keep up with growing enrollment. The district went from 80,000 students in the 1994-1995 school year to 136,000 in 2004-2005. The 2019-2020 school year has a projected total of 180,500 students.
To pay for that growth, the school system has sizable debt. According to data from the National Council on School Facilities, Gwinnett is paying over $50 million in interest on $1.2 billion debt.
The council formed in 2012 is made up of public school facilities directors who focus on state-level policy and practice concerning schools’ infrastructure.
As Gwinnett’s new buildings reach 20 years, it’s time for new roofs, new HVAC, paint and a lot of other maintenance.
With 141 schools and support facilities, Gwinnett has a maintenance budget larger than many school districts’ spending for the entire system. For the upcoming school year, it will spend $127,977,628 on construction and facilities operations.
“We work to keep every building on our radar,” said Walt Martin, chief operations officer. “We’re constantly trying to stay on top of things and plan for routine maintenance, but surprises do crop up.”
When former Gov. Nathan Deal left office one of his last acts was to restore full state funding to school districts. For nearly two decades, the state had enacted so-called “austerity cuts” forcing schools to provide the same level of learning with less money.
Although, the funds allocated to Gwinnett’s school facilities budget didn’t account for a “huge increase,” said Martin, it allowed some aesthetics to move ahead on the maintenance schedule.
“At no time did we compromise the learning environment,” he said. “Our job is to make sure it’s the most conducive to student success and staff comfort as we can.”
It’s that philosophy that created the National Council on School Facilities. Its role is to support states in their varied roles and responsibilities for the delivery of safe, healthy, and educationally appropriate public school facilities that are sustainable and fiscally sound.
“Schools have a lot of issues around maintaining buildings,” said Mary Filardo, executive director of the 21st Century School Fund. “How well a school is maintained can impact education, neighborhood housing values, student health.”
One of the most difficult aspects of school upkeep, she said, is the fallacy that new construction is virtually maintenance-free.
“It’s hard with new schools because if they’re not properly maintained the roof won’t last for 25 years or the boiler will need to be replaced in eight years instead of 20,” said Filardo. “And it’s difficult to spend the recommended per-pupil costs on schools when construction costs are going up faster than funding.”
Gwinnett County Public Schools has built more than 70 new schools in the past 20 years.
1997-98
Crews Middle School
Mason Elementary School
Partee Elementary School
Taylor Elementary School
Phoenix High School
1998-99
Meadowcreek Elementary School
1999-2000
Riverside Elementary School
Rock Springs Elementary School
Stripling Elementary School
Freeman’s Mill Elementary School
2000-01
Grayson High School
2001-02
Norcross High School (replacement school)
2003-04
Peachtree Ridge High School
Parsons Elementary School
Cooper Elementary School
Corley Elementary School
Ivy Creek Elementary School
Duncan Creek Elementary School
Sycamore Elementary School
Alford Elementary School
2004-05
Mill Creek High School
Osborne Middle School
Jones Middle School
Berkmar Middle School
Radloff Middle School
Alcova Elementary School
Chesney Elementary School
Winn Holt Elementary School
Level Creek Elementary School
Duluth Middle School (replacement school)
2006-07
Trickum Middle School (replacement school)
2007-08
Lovin Elementary School
Mulberry Elementary School
Patrick Elementary School
Oakland Meadow School
2008-09
Benefield Elementary School (replacement school)
Pucketts Mill Elementary School
Rosebud Elementary School
Trip Elementary School
Lanier Middle School
2009-10
Dyer Elementary School (replacement school)
Starling Elementary School
White Oak Elementary School
Woodward Mill Elementary School
Bay Creek Middle School
Couch Middle School
North Gwinnett Middle School
Twin Rivers Middle School
Archer High School
Mountain View High School
2010-11
Anderson-Livsey Elementary School
Burnette Elementary School
Ferguson Elementary School
Jenkins Elementary School
Roberts Elementary School
Grace Snell Middle School
Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology
Lanier High School
2011-12
Moore Middle School
2013-14
GIVE WEST
Gwinnett Online Campus
2014-15
Northbrook Middle School
Rockbridge Elementary School (Major renovation)
2015-16
Baggett Elementary School
Graves Elementary School
Jordan Middle School
Summerour Middle School (replacement)
Discovery High School
Northbrook Center
2016-17
Baldwin Elementary School
Coleman Middle School
2018-19
Paul Duke STEM High School
Phoenix High School at Sugarloaf Mills
2019-2020
McClure Health Science High School
Source: Gwinnett County Public Schools
Gwinnett County Public Schools
Maintenance & Operation budget
FY2020 $127,977,628
FY2019 $123,235,356
FY2018 $115,887,026
FY2017 $112,046,863
FY2016 $108,521,286
FY2015 $103,444,049
FY2014 $97,087,578
FY2013 $90,859,692
FY2012 $92,852,319
FY2011 $90,572,221
FY2010 $88,912,409
Source: Gwinnett County Public Schools
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