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• Cool Campuses? (PDF) by Walter Simpson (downloadable)
• The benefits of Guided Facility Self-Assessments by Keith O’Leary (if not APPA member, must read interactive PDF)
• A Study of State Tax Appropriations for Capital Needs in U.S. Public Higher Education (if not APPA member, must read interactive PDF)
• Can We Make a Difference in Campus Sustainability by Steve Glazner (if not APPA member, must read interactive PDF)
• The Facilities Stewardship Oversight Role of Governing Boards (PDF) by Lander E. Medlin (downloadable)

From Simpson’s piece, one important point: Deep energy conservation in existing facilities is a necessity

The cleanest BTU or kWh is the one we don’t consume. Thus, deep energy conservation should be the top priority in campusclimate action plans. However, most plans project modest conventional retrofits of existing buildings paired with larger-than-necessary purchases of renewable energy credits (RECs) and carbon offsets to eventually mop up the remaining energy waste. Paying someone else somewhere else to reduce emissions for you—as is the case with carbon offsets—does not model a strategy consistent with the task at hand, essentially quitting fossil fuels within a few short decades. That goal can only be achieved if energy users are successful at sharply curtailing and eliminating to whatever extent possible fossil fuel use on-site. 

Many tools and strategies are needed to achieve this objective, including submetering of buildings and even of individual building energy systems, so that the real effectiveness of conservation measures is accurately assessed and understood. The cost of submetering can be made up many times by the additional savings it allows facilities managers to achieve

Arkansas State University-Jonesboro and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas have received APPA's 2010 Award for Excellence (PDF). Congratulations to the SCUPers who are part of the teams at each institution!

The Award for Excellence is based on a set of criteria, which include:

• Leadership
• Strategic and Operational Planning
• Customer Focus Information and Analysis
• Development and Management of Human Resources
• Process Management
• Performance Results

Evaluation for the award consists of two parts: a self-evaluation addressing specific, stringent criteria, and a site visit by a team from APPA’s Professional Affairs Committee to confirm the accuracy of the self-assessment. Applying for and receiving the AFE is no small task for an institution. As you will read in the following pages from ASU-J and UNLV, it takes teamwork from everyone within the facilities organization and requires coordination, motivation, and support from the top levels of leadership to be a successful facilities operation and to win the APPA Award for Excellence.

The findings of this research study indicate that the levels of cleanliness do impact the ability of students to learn. There is a correlation, maybe stated in simple terms, that the cleaner the learning space the greater the probability that students perceive they will learn. What a powerful duo oftools. Facilities managers can now clearly indicate that decreased staffing leads to decreased levels of cleanliness, and that there is a direct connection between the cleanliness of a facility and students’ ability to learn. If educational institutions are to provide the best environment in which students can learn, they would be well advised to staff at a level that will provide an acceptable level of cleanliness that will contribute to student learning and health and not detract and distract from that critical goal.