Colleges are focusing increased effort--and money--to improve the physical condition of existing facilities and address a huge backlog of deferred maintenance. According to "American School & University's" 36th annual Maintenance and Operations (M&O) Cost Study, the median college spends 16.4% of total college budget on M&O, up from 11% the year…

Spending by school districts on maintenance and operations increased in 2006-2007, reversing years of historic low expenditures. According to "American School & University's" 36th annual Maintenance and Operations (M&O) Cost Study, the median school district spends 9.19% of total district expenditures (TDE) on M&O, up from 7.58% the year before.…

The old adage, "what goes up must come down," can be used to describe education construction spending in 2005. After impressive gains in expenditures during the first half of the decade, total construction spending by schools and universities pulled back from historic highs. A combination of factors, including skyrocketing fuel and…