The Education Facilities Clearinghouse (EFC) is a program of the
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...
(DoED) which provides support to educational facilities "on issues related to planning, design, financing, construction, improvement, operation, and maintenance" through technical assistance and training as well as dissemination of research on these issues. The program was established in 1998 and in the past has been implemented as the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (1998–2010) and the American Clearinghouse on Educational Facilities (2010–2013). As of 2014 it is administered by the
George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development and is funded through a competitive grant sponsored by the DoED.
Program services
Under the administration of the George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development, the EFC's scope is to identify and disseminate best practices in all areas related to education facilities, including identifying hazards and conducting vulnerability assessments. It maintains a website with resources for education facilities and the general public on planning, design, financing, construction, contract management, operations, maintenance, school safety, and environmental issues. It also provides both onsite and remote technical assistance and professional development without cost to public educational institutions from
pre-kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten (also called Pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...
through
higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
as well as to local education authorities and other state entities.
History
The Education Facilities Clearinghouse initiative was established in 1998, with its continuation authorized in the
Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002
The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 was an act passed by the Bush administration in November 2002. Among other motions, the act created the Institute of Education Sciences, a research arm of the United States Department of Education. There ...
. In recommending authorization for its continuation and that of the Eisenhower National Clearinghouse for Mathematics and Science Education, the
U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions noted that both programs "provide an important service to schools and the committee encourages efforts to improve their quality and expand their use."
The program was initially implemented as the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (NCEF) and was administered by the
National Institute of Building Sciences
The National Institute of Building Sciences is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that brings together representatives of government, the professions, industry, labor and consumer interests, and regulatory agencies to focus on the identif ...
, a non-governmental, non-profit organization authorized by the U.S. Congress to serve as an authoritative source on building science and technology. The NCEF's mission, funded by the US Department of Education, was to conduct and disseminate research on best practices for educational facilities. Its primary users were school administrators, facility managers, designers, and researchers. Over the years the NCEF built up a website containing a large number of resources and articles including many published by the NCEF itself.
Society for College and University Planning
The Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) is a professional association for the integration of planning in higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also ...
(3 November 2010)
"The Impending Demise of the National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (NCEF)"
. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
In 2010 the DoED put further funding of the EFC to a competitive bidding process with revised priorities for the program to include the provision of onsite technical assistance to institutions, training, and distance-learning events. Although the NCEF was one of the bidders,
the funds were awarded to
Tarleton State University
Tarleton State University is a public university with its main campus in Stephenville, Texas. It is a founding member of the Texas A&M University System and enrolled over 14,000 students in the fall of 2020.
History
John Tarleton Agricultura ...
as a three-year grant to administer the program under the name American Clearinghouse on Educational Facilities (ACEF). Following the withdrawal of DoED funding, the NCEF website and its online resources have been maintained as an archive by the National Institute of Building Sciences.
Funding for implementing the EFC program was again put to a competitive bid by the DoED in July 2013, and in October of that year George Washington University's Graduate School of Education and Human Development was awarded a $2.99 million three-year grant to administer the program under the name Education Facilities Clearinghouse.
[U.S. Department of Education (30 September 2013)]
"U.S. Department Of Education Awards Nearly $1 Million to George Washington University to Support Educational Facilities Clearinghouse"
Retrieved 6 July 2014.
See also
*
Environmental groups and resources serving K–12 schools
This article includes information about environmental groups and resources (such as those provided by government, its agencies, and existing or proposed legislation) that serve K–12 schools in the United States and internationally. The entries ...
*
Massachusetts School Building Authority The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) is a quasi-independent public authority that provides grants which partially fund municipal and regional school districts for kindergarten through high school construction and renovation projects in ...
References
External links
*{{Official, http://www.efc.gwu.edu at
George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
United States Department of Education