New task force helps districts manage school construction
Published: July 1, 2006
The California School Boards Association has formed a new task force to focus on the critical and complex task of school construction and modernization. The 15-member Construction Management Task Force, chaired by CSBA’s Immediate Past President Dr. Kerry Clegg, includes school board members as well as superintendents and representatives from labor organizations.
When possible, the task force will also involve district staff responsible for facilities planning, construction and maintenance and will examine facilities assessment plans, bond oversight committees, project stabilization agreements and labor compliance programs.
“Many of our members expressed an interest in convening a group to examine this crucial issue,” Clegg said. “The most recent estimates say that California will need to build 32,470 new classrooms and modernize another 44,492 classrooms over the next five years. Clearly this is an important topic for governing boards.”
The task force will conduct its work over the course of the coming year, with the aim of producing resource guides detailing important issues involved in the complicated process of taking a construction or modernization project from conception to completion.
The task force’s first meeting on April 21 centered on an overview of the public school construction process, including specific presentations on the work of the state Department of Education’s School Facilities Planning Division, the Department of General Services, Division of the State Architect, Office of Public School Construction and state Allocation Board.
Learning to work with multiple state agencies involved in the process is critical. The state must review and approve all construction and modernization plans. The state pays half the cost of new school construction and 60 percent of modernization projects.
Recent estimates put the state’s costs for new school construction at $10.6 billion over the next five years and $4.06 billion for modernization projects over that same period. Districts must come up with the rest of the financing.
“With these statistics in mind, it is clear that understanding the role the governance team plays in school construction is essential for school board members,” said Clegg.