Welcome K-12 Schools Community
School design decisions shape the health and learning of millions of students. They should be based on evidence.
This free research library translates peer-reviewed science into guidance for everyone who plans, funds, builds, and operates K-12 schools, created by an interdisciplinary team of public health scientists, architects, designers, planners, and education specialists.
― Our Intent
We believe every space can be a healthy place. From classrooms, cafeterias, gymnasiums, libraries and media centers, to restrooms, nurse suites, entries, corridors, and school grounds there are opportunities to support physical, mental, and social health.
― Healthy for Whom?
There’s more than one person this affects.
- Students.
- Educators.
- Custodians.
- School Nurses.
- Cafeteria Workers.
- Neurodivergent Learners.
- Administrative Staff.
- Athletes.
- Community Members.
― Filling the Gap
A National Health Survey
Today, our research team is dedicated to understanding how school buildings influence educators, specifically women, who make up 77% of the public school educator workforce. Our ambitious goal is to reach 10,000 educators across all 50 states.
― Why This Matters
- A student spends approximately 15,000 hours inside a school building before they graduate.
- Students’ lungs are growing through adolescence, making them more sensitive to the indoor air quality during that time.
- These are not just learning environments, but workplaces too. Design decisions directly impact educators.
For a superintendent, facilities director, business officer, or school board member, this makes building conditions a lever on the outcomes you are already accountable for: attendance, achievement, staff retention, and operating cost.
― What This Unlocks
Whether you are preparing a bond referendum, prioritizing deferred maintenance, evaluating a renovation, or answering a school board question about air quality, the evidence here is meant to help you make the case and defend where the money goes.
Why Us?
Human Experience Research at Perkins&Will exists to answer the question: Does the building actually work for the people inside it?
We pair public health scientists with architects, interior designers, and planners, and we publish our findings openly rather than holding them as proprietary. We have advised the Indiana Department of Education on healthy school environments and chronic absenteeism, and the Massachusetts School Building Authority on measuring energy and health across the state’s existing school portfolio.
We work at every scale, from a single classroom retrofit, district-wide facility assessment, to a statewide policy framework.
Have a question?
The guidance provided on this site is based on the available information as of the date of publication and does not replace federal, state, or local public health recommendations but aggregates best practices and innovative solutions at the intersection of buildings and school health. We encourage schools to reach out and seek expert advice on their unique circumstances.
