The advantages and disadvantages of five alternative ways of using surplus space available to school systems. (Author)

The Denver (Colorado) Board of Education has taken a number of steps to avoid closing schools. Among these are refiguring school capacities; providing full-time space for programs that do not always function full-time; providing additional private space for related services (psychological, social work, and nursing); expanding instructional…

Declining enrollments are leaving many districts with space they no longer need. The conversion of surplus school buildings to new uses can often provide communities with new vitality. Examples show unused schools converted for use as apartments, shops, and office space for public agencies. (Author/MLF)

At the same time that schools are closing in many communities because of declining enrollments, the arts are expanding at the community level. The problem of surplus school space can be the solution to the needs of many artists and arts groups. Mutual to the arts groups and the communities are the benefits of flexible arrangements and the presence…

In many communities new arrangements of surplus school space have been made that facilitate use of the space by the people of the districts, encourage government agencies to anticipate and support social transitions where they are necessary, and allow school districts to improve the quality of their programs. This paper is a survey of some of…

The use of many public school facilities now closed due to declining enrollment could generate substantial savings for new federal construction projects. Responses to a questionnaire sent to all 50 states by the General Accounting Office (GAO) show that there were 2,493 vacant schools in 19 of the 23 responding states at the beginning of the…

Many school districts experiencing declining enrollments and the resultant surplus space have, with active citizen input, found workable solutions that increase the stability of neighborhoods by enriching the lives of persons of all ages. This report is a guide for educators and citizens seeking alternative uses of vacant facilities. Suggestions…

National census data suggest a sustained period of no growth or modest growth in births; however, migration variations in the metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas and in different regions of the country portend the importance of local community planning for the future of high school facilities. The place of the high school in the scheme of…

This publication attempts to simplify the complex issue of declining enrollment and surplus school space. Part 1 is devoted to a thorough discussion of enrollment decline. Text and tables are used to explain enrollment projections, large city public school enrollment decline, birthrates, population mobility, expenditures for education, and the…

This booklet is the fifth in a series that examines community school centers. Because of the decline in school enrollments, many school districts must now cope with staff reductions, fiscal constraints, and an excess of unused space in school buildings. Although the school population is declining, the overall population in most communities is not.…

School administrators confronted with the possibility of having to close a school need to inform the public, assess community attitudes and needs, and identify the best possible use of the buildings. Existing schools must be reexamined in light of the new need to conserve energy and reduce operating costs. Measures that reduce energy consumption…