Administrators Joining Preservationists To Save Schools

Two years ago, the Brentwood, Pa., school board came up with a plan to save $6 million by renovating two old schools, rather than tearing them down to build new ones.

But when its request for state construction aid was rejected because of state restrictions on the schools' wood-frame construction, the board joined historic-preservation advocates in a two-year struggle to alter Pennsylvania policy.

Their efforts were rewarded last month when the state education department made it easier to qualify for aid...