Long Range Planning
Long-Range Planning of Capital Facility Needs
The first paragraph of G.S. 115c-521 requires: Local Boards of Education shall submit their long-range plans for meeting school facility needs to the State Board of Education by January 1, 1988, and every five years thereafter. The 1995 General Assembly of North Carolina authorized the School Capital Construction Study Commission and charged the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of public school facility needs in North Carolina. Needs documented in that study helped the justify the $1.8 billion state bond issue that was passed in 1996. It also changed the five-year cycle of the study.
The Department of Public Instruction's School Support Division, through its School Planning Section, facilitates the statewide study and tabulates the results for the survey. A computer program for evaluating and reporting needs is provided to each LEA. The program contains a list of schools, ADM for each school and DPI's membership projections. Typical construction unit costs and building area standards from N.C. Public Schools Facility Guidelines are built into the program. In addition, the program does most of the math as data is entered. The final summary report is presented to and approved by the Board of Education and the County Commissioners.
The needs survey considers:
- Current ADM and projected membership for each school (new schools and additions to existing facilities)
- County demographics and system-wide projected enrollment (new schools and additions to existing facilities)
- Condition of Existing Facilities (renovation of existing facilities)
- Program deficiencies based on Current Educational Specifications (renovations and additions at existing facilities)
The last Facility Needs Survey was completed in 2015, and took into consideration all projects included in the 2014 Bond Program. The facility needs identified, totaled over $406 million.