Essentials Magazine Essentials Summer 2019 | Page 10

TRENDS AND OPPORTUNITIES in K-12 Capital Improvement Funding: 2018-2020 & Beyond BY JIM NORWOOD K -12 Solution Providers need to track school funding closely to be successful in a highly competitive business environment. Capital improve- ment funding for schools, however, con- tinues to be difficult and contentious. SchoolBondFinder has found that as daunting as the funding challenges are, the good news is that educational con- struction spending has almost recovered from the great recession and is on track in 2019 to finally meet or exceed levels not seen since 2009. As an election year, 2020 is poised to be a particularly large year for capital improvement dollars. The last decade has been difficult, but school districts have been scratch- ing and clawing to find improvement funding, driven by both popu- lation growth trends and increasingly aging facilities in need of replacement, renovation, and upkeep. 10 essentials | Summer 2019