The vital connection between instruction and facilities is recognized in Strategic Plan Goal 4: to provide optimal learning environments. Optimal learning environments must be agile in the short term to accommodate different teaching and learning styles, and adaptable in the long term to accommodate program changes with minimal cost.Educational and technical specifications define how optimal learning environments are to be achieved.

APS recognizes how educational and technical specifications contribute to stretching capacity construction dollars available through bond financing. Existing and new facilities must be used as efficiently and intensively as possible. To do so, educational specifications are evaluated carefully for every new project to ensure that each space is fully occupied for as many periods during the day as possible and that each space is designed to accommodate multiple uses.Technical specifications are also evaluated carefully for each project to increase the value of each dollar spent while also meeting standards for optimal learning environments, high energy performance, low maintenance and environmental sustainability.

Educational Specifications at APS comprise:

• School Space Guidelines, which list the types and net area of each space in elementary, middle and high schools
• Educational Specifications, which comprise detailed datasheets for each space, describing how each space is intended to be used, and listing the furniture, equipment and data/communications systems it
• Schedules of Spaces for a particular school, which follow the School Space Guidelines and Educational Specifications as closely as possible and identify the number of spaces to be provided in the school to achieve the required seating capacity and accommodate the specific instructional programs to be located in the school

School Space Guidelines

• Elementary Schools, adopted by the School Board on April 13, 2000
• Middle Schools, adopted by the School Board on April 13, 2000
• High Schools, adopted by the School Board on February 1, 2001

Educational Specifications

• Elementary Schools, dated December 2004
• Middle Schools, dated December 2004
• High Schools, dated December 2004

Schedules of Spaces

• Ashlawn Elementary School, approved by School Board at Final Design on July 8, 2013
• Discovery Elementary School, approved by School Board at Final Design on December 5, 2013
• McKinley Elementary School, approved by School Board at Final Design on February 19, 2015

Please note that Ashlawn and McKinley are addition/renovation projects, so there are deviations from the Space Guidelines to reflect existing conditions.