Special Report

A Tipping Point for America’s Aging School Buildings

March 13, 2023
Students walk through school at the end of the day at Swampscott High School, which is collocated and shares space with the senior center in Swampscott, Mass., on March 8, 2023. As America’s population ages and the number of school-aged children decrease, district and community leaders are finding ways to combine services and locations.
Students walk through school at the end of the day at Swampscott High School, which is collocated and shares space with the senior center in Swampscott, Mass., on March 8, 2023. As America’s population ages and the number of school-aged children decrease, district and community leaders are finding ways to combine services and locations.
Sophie Park for Education Week
Children need safe places to learn, and research has shown that the right school setting can boost student achievement. A thoughtful design can also buoy students’ and teachers’ mental health.

But a lack of consistent, equitable investment in the nation’s school buildings is showing.

Buildings in most school districts require major system upgrades, federal data have shown. Many students can’t drink the tap water at their schools. And school districts are struggling to find the staff needed to maintain their existing facilities, much less secure the funding to make major improvements. Plus, the uncertainty of declining enrollments makes taking an expensive risk on a new building that much more complicated.

This special report addresses the state of the nation’s school buildings and their shortcomings. But it also points to a way forward as educational needs evolve, the nation ages, and the consequences of climate change come into focus.