Figure: Vermont Facilities and Construction Dashboard image

Dashboard Overview

The Dashboard Explorer is an easy-to-use tool that lets you quickly access and filter 20 years of projected data on the physical condition of Vermont's educational facilities. Information is organized by LEA (Local Educational Agency) districts, individual facilities, and school types. This data is based on real-world observations made about the condition of each facility, categorized by building systems. The dashboard projects these conditions over a 20-year timeframe.

In 2007, the state of Vermont suspended aid for school construction. This suspension, combined with school facilities budgets that were already challenged to meet district needs, has contributed to a substantial backlog of deferred maintenance and renovation projects in Vermont’s public schools. In 2021, the Vermont General Assembly enacted Act 72 to address the needs and conditions of public school facilities resulting from this chronic underinvestment. Act 72 required the Agency of Education to conduct a facilities assessment of the state’s public school buildings. Using a standard assessment methodology, these field assessments generated baseline data for all major systems in every school facility. The data generated from these facilities assessments provides the informational backbone this Dashboard draws upon that allows end users to sort, query, analyze and compare the various key metrics used to understand facilities conditions and costs, allowing for both graphical displays and numerical summaries.

An overview webinar explaining how to use the Facilities Dashboard can be viewed on YouTube.

Tips & Information on Dashboard Use and Terms

Definitions of Terms used: "Hamburger Menu"

The Dashboard employs terminology commonly used when describing facilities and the costs associated with them. On pages of the Dashboard that use terminology requiring explanation, in the upper right corner in the dark green band there is an icon made up of three horizontal and parallel lines, called a "Hamburger Menu." Clicking on this Icon will lead you to definitions for the terms used on the page.

Data Filtering

The left side of every page on the Dashboard contains a data filtering section that allows for custom filtering by categories of interest to the user.

National School Lunch Program (NSLP)

The NSLP is a federally assisted meal program that provides low-cost or no-cost lunches to children each school day. The NSLP value displayed indicates the percentage of students who are eligible for this program, by school or by Supervisory Union/Supervisory District.

Systems Descriptors

Uniformat coding is a method of classifying building elements and related sitework. Elements as defined here are major components common to most buildings. Elements are also commonly referred to as systems or assemblies. Uniformat breaks a facility into systems that perform a function such as Sub-Structure (foundations), Shell, Interiors, Services (HVAC, Electrical, Plumbing, Fire Protection, Conveying), Equipment & Furnishings, Special Construction (Ancillary Buildings, Hazardous Materials Remediation, Demolition) and Sitework. The data gathered from the facilities assessments was grouped by these system types under the Uniformat coding structure and form the basis of the data displays and analysis depicted on the 3-Systems Tab of the Dashboard.

Data Downloads

Wherever a download icon appears in the Dashboard, the data can be downloaded and opened in Excel.

Section Dividers

Every Page allows for the movement of horizontal and vertical boundary lines to allow for a larger view of the area of interest. This is done by using the mouse and hovering over the boundary looking to be moved and then clicking and dragging.