Seven Budget-Friendly Investments to Upgrade School Facilities September 25, 2024

Roof repairs, electrical work, and plumbing upgrades are just a few examples of the types of routine maintenance that often require attention if left unaddressed for too long. To ensure that the school facility remains functional over the long-term it’s crucial to address maintenance issues, and particularly important to address issues with the potential to grow into larger, more costly problems. Completing deferred maintenance also offers opportunities increase the energy efficiency of the facility, which can meaningfully reduce utility bills. If a roof replacement or installation is needed, for example, improving the insulation by adding a few inches of foam board is a small cost in terms of the overall project and can significantly save on both heating and cooling costs.   
 
The same is true if windows or doors need to be repaired or replaced. Poorly insulated windows and doors increase the amount of energy lost via building emissions, which is both damaging to the environment and a school’s bottom line when utility bills are due. There are several basic steps schools can take to improve building insulation to curb energy loss, including installing weather stripping on windows and gasketing and sweeps on doors to help create a better seal to reduce energy consumption. 

As Detroit Achievement Academy Founder Kyle Smitley says, “buildings communicate” to the people who use them, and school facilities with peeling paint, worn carpet, and other signs of age and deterioration send a clear message to students, parents, teachers, and staff that where they learn and work is meant only to be functional, not inspiring. New carpet, a fresh coat of paint on the walls or stain on hardwood floors, wayfinding signs in school colors, and other surface-level updates send just as clear a message that the people who spend time in the building are valued and deserving of a learning and work environment that feels modern and well cared for.   

Completing minor renovations to spaces within the facility designed for collaboration and to support teachers and staff outside of the classroom – like teacher planning rooms, lounges, and kitchenettes – can be a simple way to boost morale and foster an environment in which school employees feel valued. Installing a window in a room that lacks any natural light is one example of a relatively easy renovation project that can yield substantial benefits. Expanding such spaces when feasible by removing walls or otherwise altering the layout of the room to make them more comfortable for teachers and staff is another potential morale-boosting change that’s possible that doesn’t require a large budget and the ability to accommodate months of construction.   

Like fresh paint, new furniture can dramatically change the aesthetic of a space to make it more functional and inviting. In a school library, for example, replacing aged tables, chairs, and bookcases can create a better experience for students that’s more conducive to learning and development. Investments in technology – like interactive touchscreen displays in classrooms or better Wi-Fi connectivity – can also improve the learning environment and provide teachers with more effective tools to do their jobs. Purchasing new kitchen equipment is another example of a relatively minor investment that can enable a greater variety of healthy foods to be offered.  

In older buildings designed with a different set of priorities in mind, safety and security can be bolstered with investments in new tools that help control access to the building, monitoring within the facility, and communication in an emergency. This can include tools like video intercoms with interlock entries at entry points, cameras to expand visibility in areas of the building that are not regularly monitored, and door management systems that alert school staff when access points to the building or within the building are left unsecured, among other examples.  

While not a flashy renovation, improving and/or increasing the capacity of bathrooms is a relatively simple upgrade that will positively impact anyone who spends time in the facility. Additionally, renovating bathrooms is an ideal time to reduce water usage in the building by installing low-flow plumbing fixtures (e.g., toilets, faucets) that reduce waste. Low-flow fixtures are designed to produce water pressure similar or equal to older fixtures, but with drastically less water used. This can add up to meaningful cost savings over time while contributing to a more sustainable facility.  

Schools can often achieve cost savings while increasing the sustainability of their facilities by repairing or replacing inefficient and/or outdated HVAC systems. This is particularly true when gas/oil-fired systems are replaced with electric heat pump systems. In addition to improving energy efficiency, repairing or replacing HVAC components can improve air quality and help regulate the temperature more effectively to provide an environment better suited for learning and working.