advanced search

K-12 Education Construction Surges Again

Mar 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Stefanie Kure Senior Associate Editor

Electrical contractors take note: K-12 education construction is on the upswing for 2007 and is projected to remain strong for almost a decade — making education the nation's largest nonresidential building market based on the value of total construction. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Washington, D.C., K-12 enrollments will grow by 3 million — or 5.4% — between 2005 and 2015, ultimately reaching a total of 58.1 million students. This surge in enrollments translates into billions of dollars spent on new and/or upgraded classroom space and demand for the companies who help provide it.

While overall U.S. enrollment growth remains strong, experts say certain regions of the country will reap more benefits than others. According to McGraw-Hill's “Construction Outlook 2007,” most of the growth will come from the South and West over the next 10 years. In the South, a notable 2.1 million (11.5%) more students will attend public school by 2015. Specifically, Texas, Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina will each experience enrollment gains of 10% or greater. The West will also see an expansion in enrollments, growing by 821,000 (6.9%) to a total of 12.7 million by 2015, with Nevada and Arizona leading the pack. Although expected to gain just 171,000 students over the next 10 years, California will remain the state with the largest number of students — anticipated to reach 6.6 million in 2015.

In comparison, the Northeast and Midwest are poised to lose students over the next decade. The majority of this decline will take place in the Northeast, with a loss of 343,000 students (4.2% decrease). States facing the biggest reductions in enrollments include New York (-184,000), Pennsylvania (-85,000), Michigan (-67,000), Ohio (-55,000), and Massachusetts (-30,000). A more moderate 30,000 student drop (less than 1%) is predicted for the Midwest.

Nevertheless, “the total numbers of school-age children still are staggering even when compared to total numbers in the South and West,” says Joe Agron, editor-in-chief of American School & University magazine, an Overland Park, Kan.-based trade magazine and sister publication of EC&M. “Even with overall enrollment declines, many areas of the Northeast and Midwest are growing.”

According to AS&U's “32^nd Annual Official Education Construction Report,” educational institutions (K-12 and higher education combined) will spend around $125 billion on construction projects between 2006 and 2008. For K-12, construction spending will total $80.1 billion, with $46.2 billion being spent on new facilities, $16.3 billion earmarked for additions, and $17.6 billion going toward modernizations. The Table (click here to see Table) details how K-12 construction dollars are projected to be split through 2008.

Although the majority of money is still being allocated to new construction, renovations and modernizations will likely become a larger part of K-12 education construction over the next few years, reports FMI Corp., a management consulting and investment banking firm headquartered in Raleigh, N.C. In its “2007 U.S. Markets Construction Overview,” FMI attributes this shift in spending to several factors: the mushrooming cost of materials and labor, infrastructure enhancements needed to address changing weather and climate conditions across the United States, burgeoning classroom technology requirements, and advanced building codes and materials standards.

Other trends FMI sees affecting K-12 construction include the upsurge in rural and urban school closings, increased immigration/emigration, and the gaining popularity of green design (also known as sustainable design or high-performance design), an approach that seeks to produce buildings in a way that reduces use of non-renewable resources, minimizes environmental impact, and relates people with the natural environment.

A recent study by McGraw-Hill Construction, “The Education Green Building SmartMarket Report,” finds that the education sector is the fastest-growing market for sustainable design. “The results are very exciting,” says Harvey M. Bernstein, McGraw-Hill Construction vice president of Industry Analytics, Alliances, and Strategic Incentives, New York. “Given the fact that education construction is worth $53 billion overall — and the market indicators point to strong green building growth in this sector — we expect the green building share to be significant in five years.”

Want to use this article? Click here for options!

© 2012 Penton Business Media, Inc.

---

Acceptable Use Policy blog comments powered by Disqus

Browse Back Issues Select an Issue May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 1, 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 1, 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 1, 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 1, 2006 May 1, 2006 April 2006 March 1, 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 1, 2004 January 1, 2004 December 1, 2003 November 1, 2003 October 1, 2003 September 1, 2003 August 1, 2003 July 1, 2003 June 1, 2003 May 1, 2003 April 1, 2003 March 1, 2003 February 1, 2003 January 1, 2003 December 1, 2002 November 1, 2002 October 1, 2002 September 1, 2002 August 1, 2002 July 1, 2002 June 1, 2002 May 1, 2002 April 1, 2002 March 1, 2002 February 1, 2002 January 1, 2002 December 1, 2001 November 1, 2001 October 1, 2001 September 1, 2001 August 1, 2001 July 1, 2001 June 1, 2001 May 1, 2001 April 1, 2001 March 1, 2001 February 1, 2001 January 1, 2001 December 1, 2000 November 1, 2000 October 1, 2000 September 1, 2000 August 1, 2000 July 1, 2000 June 1, 2000 May 1, 2000 April 1, 2000 March 1, 2000 February 1, 2000 January 1, 2000 December 1, 1999 November 1, 1999 October 1, 1999 September 1, 1999 August 1, 1999 July 1, 1999 June 1, 1999 May 1, 1999 April 1, 1999 March 1, 1999 February 1, 1999 January 1, 1999 December 1, 1998 November 1, 1998 October 1, 1998 September 1, 1998 August 1, 1998 July 1, 1998 June 1, 1998 May 1, 1998 April 1, 1998 March 1, 1998 February 1, 1998 January 1, 1998 December 1, 1997 November 1, 1997 December 1, 1996 November 1, 1996 October 1, 1996 September 1, 1996 August 1, 1996 July 1, 1996 June 1, 1996 May 1, 1996 April 1, 1996 March 1, 1996 February 1, 1996 January 1, 1996 December 1, 1995 November 30, 1995 November 1, 1995 October 1, 1995 September 1, 1995 August 1, 1995 July 1, 1995 June 1, 1995 May 1, 1995 April 1, 1995 March 1, 1995 February 1, 1995

browse e-newsletters