DoD schools have a 78% failure rate

[unhappycamper]

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Construction of new buildings are underway at Wiesbaden High School, as older buildings are torn down. A trench for pipes and wiring for the new buildings was laid down during the summer break and is scheduled to be finished when school resumes in August.



By Travis J. Tritten
Stars and Stripes
Published: August 11, 2010

MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan — After decades of neglected and deferred maintenance, more than three-quarters of all Defense Department schools are considered to be in poor or failing condition, according to records released by the Department of Defense Education Activity on Wednesday.

The majority of the department’s 191 schools worldwide have aged beyond repair and many others require significant upgrades, prompting the Pentagon to issue an urgent call to Congress for $3.7 billion for repairs and replacements over the next five years, officials announced.

In all, 78 percent of schools for Defense Department dependents were rated as unacceptable, according to the results of a DODEA study. But in the current budget making its way through Congress, school officials are seeking only about 10 percent of the construction funds they will ultimately need, meaning only seven schools are likely to be replaced and two others will be repaired in the next fiscal year.

Many schools are deteriorating from the inside and local districts are left to cover the underlying problems with routine maintenance such as painting and the addition of buildings and temporary space, according to DODEA documents and recent interviews with officials.

“Our facilities, the majority of them are over 45 years old and … the life expectancy of a school is 45 years,” said Russ Roberts, chief of logistics for DODEA. “So, that contributes a lot to the conditions, just the age alone.”