As owner’s representative, Heery will be responsible for program management on roughly half of the projects identified in the school system’s Safety, Music, Art, Athletics, Renovations and Technology (SMART) initiative. Work will include roofing, building envelope and HVAC replacements, safety and security improvements, and technology upgrades, according to a statement by Heery International. A small number of building additions are also included on the project list.

“We are delighted to begin work with the Broward County Public Schools,” said Rob Chomiak, a senior vice president and Heery’s national director of program management, in a statement. “The School Board is showing a strong commitment to education and ensuring that students in Broward have access to quality school facilities.”

Of the $984 million allocated, $730.4 million will go toward renovation projects and $125.6 million will be dedicated to safety improvements. An additional $80.8 million will be spent on technology, while music and art will receive $39.8 million. Athletic improvements will total $7.4 million. Although the investment is considerable, the $984 million expenditure will address only a third of the nearly $3 billion in needs identified by a recent comprehensive facilities assessment, according to a statement by Broward County School Superintendent Robert Runcie and School Board Chair Donna Korn published in The Sun Sentinel. The first series of bonds were issued in June 2015.

Broward County Public Schools is the sixth largest public school system in the United States and the second largest in the state of Florida. It educates more than 265,000 students and approximately 175,000 adult students across 238 schools, centers and technical colleges, and 104 charter schools.
 

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The survey, sponsored by Hartford, Conn.-based United Technologies Corp. and the U.S. Green Building Council’s Center for Green Schools, also found that one in three of the 1,000 surveyed said the majority of U.S. schools are in "poor" shape. Only 6 percent said U.S. schools are in "excellent" shape.

Surveys were conducted via telephone between Sept. 23 and Sept. 25 by New York-based GfK Custom Research North America.

"Americans understand the importance of our nation’s school infrastructure and see the urgent need for significant investments," said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair of the U.S. Green Building Council. "Too many of our schools are outdated, woefully energy inefficient, unhealthy, and negatively affect our children’s ability to learn — and ultimately to compete — in a global marketplace.”

In 2008, the United States deferred an estimated $254 billion in school facility maintenance, he said.

“Inadequate investment into maintaining school infrastructure has led to a significant number of schools in need of major repair and replacement,” Fedrizzi said. “That’s unacceptable."

At least 25,000 U.S. schools are in need of extensive repair and replacement, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

"These survey results demonstrate that the majority of Americans believe that maintaining our existing outdated, inefficient and wasteful school infrastructure simply isn’t good enough — which is why the Center for Green Schools is driving the green schools moment," Fedrizzi said.

The Green Building Council states that on average, green schools save $100,000 per year on operating costs: enough to hire at least one new teacher, buy 200 new computers or purchase 5,000 textbooks. Green schools use 33 percent less energy and 32 percent less water than conventionally constructed schools, which significantly reduces utility costs. If all new U.S. school construction and renovation went green today, the total energy savings alone would be $20 billion over the next 10 years, it says.

"A green school is an energy efficient school — meaning less money is spent on overhead like heating and cooling and more can be spent on keeping teachers in the classroom and getting them the resources they need," said Sandy Diehl, vice president, Integrated Buildings Solutions, United Technologies Corp., and a Center for Green Schools advisory board member.

In a survey of green school administrators, 70 percent reported that green school construction reduced student absenteeism and improved student performance, according to the Council.

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