Cornell University | Sage Chapel
Catskills Borscht Belt Museum — Food and Comedy in the Resort Era
Venison Borscht
- Home Page 2
loading...
The Rossborough Inn
This content is accessible to paid subscribers. To view it please enter your password below or send mike@standardsmichigan.com a request for subscription details.
Pathways 100
Today we break down the literature for exterior and interior pathways in education communities. We limit the term “pathway” to refer to human pathways (as in egress and ingress paths); not wiring or piping pathways. Maximum distance of travel from within a building and along an egress path toward safety is a core topic in building safety literature. Starting 2023 we will break down coverage of subject catalogs and bibliographies:
Pathways 100: Survey of all titles for both the exterior and interior environments
Pathways 200: Review of codes, standards and guidelines for building interiors
Related recent research:
Hallways and stairways lighting system cost reduction
The research on circadian rhythm parameters testing of lighting quality in classrooms
Research and discussion on classroom blackboard lighting
Pathways 300: Review of codes, standards and guidelines campus environment outside the buildings; all seasons
Pathways 500: Review of noteworthy litigation. Campus pathways are rich in possibilities for legal actions so we will refresh our understanding of the landmark decisions.
This breakdown is “somewhat” inspired by recent action by ASHRAE International to expand the scope of ASHRAE 90.1 to heating and cooling environments outside buildings. The new title of ASHRAE 901. includes the word “Site”, which is another way of saying “the world” outside buildings. Standards Michigan commented on the consequences of doing this in the proposal stages in 2020-2021.
The topic involves titles from many standards setting organizations; among them:
American National Standards Institute
C136-series for street lighting
International Code Council (accessible and useable ingress and egress entrances, paths and exits)
International Building Code: Chapter 10 Means of Egress
ICC A117 Accessibility Meeting Agenda December 15 2022 (Pathways)
ICC A117.1 2023 Meeting Calendar Accessible and Useable Buildings
Modifications for A117.1 12-1-2022 meeting
IFC §909.21.6 Proposal FS118-21 Pressurization systems for elevator pathways (now being discussed during the ICC Group A Committee Action Hearings in September)
American Society of Civil Engineers (roads, sidewalks)
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
ASME A17.1-2019: Safety Code for Elevators and Escalators
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (wayfinding along unofficial footpaths using the internet of small things)
Education & Healthcare Facility Electrotechnology
A BIM-Based Coordination Support System for Emergency Response
Computer Vision Method in Means of Egress Obstruction Detection
National Electrical Manufacturers Association
National Fire Protection Association (fire protection for interior premises, fire truck routes, electric signage, security)
2021 NFPA 101 Life Safety Code
Chapter 3 Means of Egress
Chapter 12-13 Assembly Occupancies
Chapter 14-15 Educational Occupancies
Chapter 18-19 Health Care Occupancies
2022 Standard for Emergency and Standby Power Systems
Chapter 5 – Emergency Power Supply: Energy Sources, Converters and Accessories
ASTM International Committee C09 on Concrete and Concrete Aggregates
Standard Terminology Relating to Concrete and Concrete Aggregates
…And about 20 others.
We might venture onto the minefield of sensitivities about signage: too much, too many, too big, too small? There are signs everywhere in academia.
Many titles in the foregoing list are inspired by legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act administered by the US Department of Justice
As usual, we’ll only have time to identify the titles and concepts in motion and set up a separate markup session. Open to everyone; use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.
Texas Tech
MORE:
International Building Code §3104 Pedestrian Walkways and Tunnels
2023 National Electrical Code Article 420 — Luminaires, Lampholders, and Lamps
2023 National Electrical Code Article 600 – Electric Signs and Outline Lighting
Bibliography
Shaping the Sidewalk Experience
Federal Highway Administration University Course on Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation
“The Via Appia: A Case Study in the Political Geography of Imperialism” Hannah Friedman. This article, published in the Journal of Historical Geography in 2011, examines the Appian Way as a product of Roman imperialism and a reflection of Roman attitudes toward the landscape and its inhabitants. The author draws on both textual and archaeological evidence to explore the road’s impact on the regions it passed through.
“The Appian Way: The Road that Built the Roman Empire” by Richard Talbert – Cambridge University Press 2012. A a comprehensive study of the Appian Way and its significance to the Roman Empire. The author draws on a wide range of archaeological and historical evidence to explore the road’s construction, use, and legacy.
Signs, Signs, Signs
…and Sign Pollution
Our first impression of a community is its visual environment, which is reflected from the pretty integration of the built and natural forms. Visual pollution is defined as the whole of irregular formations that are unattractive and affects people’s ability to enjoy or appreciate the view and vista. Anything that interferes with the “pretty scenes” and other distortion may become a cause of visual pollution. With the rapid increase of population world widebuilding sector became the major source of visual pollution especially in the city center.
Join us today when we sweep through the surprisingly large catalog of titles devoted to signage. We will borrow from our previous coverage of pathway standards. Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.
International students enrolling in U.S. colleges encounter Academic English — the formal register of lectures, textbooks, papers, and discussions. This variety often embeds assumptions that diverge sharply from the American Founding’s emphasis on limited government, individual liberty, natural rights, and skepticism of centralized authority.
The Founders designed a republic of enumerated powers, checks and balances, and federalism to restrain government and protect personal sovereignty. They viewed government as a necessary but dangerous servant. Deference was owed primarily to law and reason, not to elites or the state.
Modern university discourse, however, frequently frames issues through lenses that normalize expansive government. Terms like “equity,” “systemic oppression,” “social justice,” “sustainability,” and “public good” recur in required writing, readings, and class analysis. These presuppose that societal problems demand coordinated state or institutional intervention and expert guidance.
International students, often writing in a second language, must master not only grammar but also these rhetorical conventions to succeed. Essays commonly reward framing arguments around collective victimhood, institutional reform, or government solutions, while skepticism of authority or defense of limited government can be marked down.
This creates subtle acculturation. Students absorb a version of English that subtly legitimizes big government as moral progress — contrasting the Founding’s core warning: unchecked power threatens liberty. Proficiency thus includes ideological fluency in progressive norms dominant in humanities and social sciences.
In short, many international graduates internalize habits of thought prioritizing collective authority and equity over the Founders’ individualism and restraint — shaping future global elites away from the Republic’s original limited-government ethos.
Noteworthy court cases involving signage on colleges and universities:
- Widmar v. Vincent (1981): In this Supreme Court case, the court held that public universities cannot discriminate against student groups based on their religious or political beliefs, including the display of signs or other expressive activities.
- Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969): This Supreme Court case involved a challenge to a school district’s ban on wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War. The court held that students have a First Amendment right to express their views through symbols and signs, as long as it does not disrupt the educational environment.
- Healy v. James (1972): In this Supreme Court case, the court held that colleges and universities cannot impose a prior restraint on student speech, including the display of signs, unless there is a clear and present danger of imminent violence or disruption.
- Rosenberger v. Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia (1995): In this Supreme Court case, the court held that public universities cannot discriminate against student groups based on their viewpoint, including the display of signs or other expressive activities.
- Texas v. Johnson (1989): This Supreme Court case involved a challenge to a Texas law that prohibited the desecration of the American flag. The court held that flag burning is a form of symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment, including on college and university campuses.
Court cases involving municipal signage:
- Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015): This Supreme Court case involved a challenge to the town of Gilbert, Arizona’s sign code, which regulated the size, location, and duration of signs based on their content. The court held that the sign code was a content-based restriction on speech and therefore subject to strict scrutiny.
- City of Ladue v. Gilleo (1994): In this Supreme Court case, the court struck down a municipal ordinance that banned the display of signs on residential property, except for signs that fell within specific exemptions. The court held that the ban was an unconstitutional restriction on the freedom of speech.
- Metromedia, Inc. v. San Diego (1981): This Supreme Court case involved a challenge to a San Diego ordinance that banned off-premises advertising signs while allowing on-premises signs. The court held that the ordinance was an unconstitutional restriction on free speech, as it discriminated against certain types of speech.
- City of Ladue v. Center for the Study of Responsive Law, Inc. (1980): In this Supreme Court case, the court upheld a municipal ordinance that prohibited the display of signs on public property, but only if the signs were posted for longer than 10 days. The court held that the ordinance was a valid time, place, and manner restriction on speech.
- City of Boerne v. Flores (1997): This Supreme Court case involved a challenge to a municipal sign code that regulated the size, location, and content of signs in the city. The court held that the sign code violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, as it burdened the exercise of religion without a compelling government interest.
Finally got my nameplate! #Official #newPI pic.twitter.com/gLgMv4vvCb
— 🪷 Ashley Dalrymple (@dr_shlee) April 5, 2023
Halloween
Hope College | Holland Michigan
Emmanuel College | Suffolk County Massachusetts
(上海体育学院
Halloween Safety Tips for Kids, Adults, and College Students
National Safety Council: Simple Steps for an Extra Safe Halloween
National Fire Protection Association: Halloween Safety Tips
Vast and Innumerable Throngs of the Ancient Dead
Spooky Specialties
Net Position FY 2025: $4.409 billion
How much do students know about the people whose accumulated wealth created the beautiful places in which they study? Do they appreciate the irony that institutions whose prevailing politics (a 132:1 ratio of Democrats to Republicans) often differ from those of their benefactors continue to flourish through the generosity of earlier generations?
Provost Financial Plan | Current Capital Projects
@WilliamsEphsFB has four sets of brothers on the team this season! That’s 10.8% of the roster. And the most in the NESCAC. We met up with the siblings to see how well they each know their bro—and who’s the family favorite. https://t.co/NjR0uQT1Z0
— Williams College (@WilliamsCollege) October 21, 2026
Tax-Free Bonds
Current Referenda | Ballotpedia
As the adage goes: “The cure for high prices, is high prices”. Today–ahead of the August primary elections in the United States (when bond referenda appear on ballots — we explore fiscal runaway with particular interest in the instruments that finance construction of the real assets. We recap what we have been doing for 30-odd years placing downward pressure on life-cycle cost.
Perspective:
-
- The largest school bond referendum on ballots in November 2025 is the $1.4 billion package for Richardson Independent School District (ISD) in Texas.
- University of Michigan’s 2025 $2 billion general revenue bonds
- New York University’s 2025 $2.18 billion bonds through the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York
- The largest school bond referendum on ballots in November 2024 was Measure US for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) in California, totaling $9 billion.
- In the November 2022 elections, a significant number of school bond referenda were presented to voters across the United States. For example, in Wisconsin alone, there were 57 successful capital referenda amounting to nearly $2.1 billion in authorized debt (Wisconsin Policy Forum)
- In Texas, Central Texas schools had a total of $4.24 billion in bonds on the ballot, covering various propositions for school facilities, technology improvements, and athletic facilities (Fox 7 Austin)
- In California and Arkansas, bond measures totaling $74 million — including school choice — were aimed at addressing school facility improvements (The74Million)
- Voters in 16 North Carolina counties approved bond issues totaling $4.27 billion, with $3.08 billion dedicated to K-12 public school construction and improvements (EducationNC)
“The cure for high prices, is high prices” — They say.
Today we explore fiscal runaway in the US education “industry” with particular interest in the financing instruments for building the real assets that are the beating heart of culture in neighborhoods, cities, counties and states. We steer clear of social and political issues. The marketing of these projects — and how the loans are paid off — provides insight into the costs and benefits of this $100+ billion industry; the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States.
We cannot do much to stop the hyperbolically rising cost of administrative functionaries but we can force the incumbents we describe in our ABOUT to work a little harder to reduce un-used (or un-useable) space and reduce maintenance cost. Sometimes simple questions result in obvious answers that result in significant savings.
More recently hybrid teaching and learning space, owing the the circumstances of the pandemic, opens new possibilities for placing downward pressure on cost.
Regulation or Money-Laundering?
Every school building begins twice: first in the bond market, and later on the construction site. After Architect-Engineers and Building Construction Contractors (many of whom finance election advocacy enterprises) the following organizations are involved in placing a bond on the open market:
- School Districts: Individual school districts issue bonds to fund construction or renovation of school facilities, purchase equipment, or cover other educational expenses. Each school district is responsible for managing its own bond issuances.
- Colleges and Universities: Higher education institutions, such as universities and colleges, issue bonds to finance campus expansions, construction of new academic buildings, dormitories, research facilities, and other capital projects.
- State-Level Agencies: Many states have agencies responsible for overseeing and coordinating bond issuances for schools and universities. These agencies may facilitate bond sales, help ensure compliance with state regulations, and provide financial assistance to educational institutions.
- Municipal Finance Authorities: Municipal finance authorities at the state or local level often play a role in facilitating bond transactions for educational entities. They may act as intermediaries in the bond issuance process.
- Investment Banks and Underwriters: Investment banks and underwriters assist educational institutions in structuring and selling their bonds to investors. They help determine bond terms, market the bonds, and manage the offering.
- Bond Counsel: Bond counsel, typically law firms, provide legal advice to educational institutions on bond issuances. They help ensure that the bond issuance complies with all legal requirements and regulations.
- Rating Agencies: Rating agencies, such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, and Fitch Ratings, assess the creditworthiness of the bonds and assign credit ratings. These ratings influence the interest rates at which the bonds can be issued.
- Investors: Various institutional and individual investors, including mutual funds, pension funds, and individual bond buyers, purchase school and university bonds as part of their investment portfolios.
- Financial Advisors: Financial advisory firms provide guidance to educational institutions on bond issuances, helping them make informed financial decisions related to borrowing and debt management.
- Regulatory Authorities: Federal and state regulatory authorities, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and state-specific agencies, oversee and regulate the issuance of bonds to ensure compliance with securities laws and financial regulations.
These organizations collectively contribute to the process of issuing, selling, and managing school and university bonds in the United States, allowing educational institutions to raise the necessary funds for their capital projects and operations. The specific entities involved may vary depending on the size and location of the educational institution and the nature of the bond issuance.
Bond issuances affect local property values.
Schenkingen
“The secret of great fortunes without apparent cause
is a crime forgotten, for it was properly done.”
CASE FAQ for Standards: Definition of Educational Philanthropy
Are they hedge funds with a side hustle in teaching, research and building construction? Are they tricked out memorial gardens for philanthropists? In either case leaders of educational settlements are expected to act in the best interests of both their institution and their donors, and to maintain high standards of transparency, accountability, and ethical conduct when accepting charitable gifts.
University endowments are comprised of money or other financial assets that are donated to academic institutions. Charitable donations are the primary source of funds for endowments. Endowment funds support the teaching, research, and public service missions of colleges and universities.
In the case of endowment funds for academic institutions, the income generated is intended to finance a portion of the operating or capital requirements of the institution. In addition to a general university endowment fund, institutions may also maintain a number of restricted endowments that are intended to fund specific areas within the institution, including professorships, scholarships, and fellowships.
More
2021 NACUBO-TIAA Study of Endowments
University of Michigan: Policy Guidelines for Naming of Facilities, Spaces and Streets
Dartmouth University Endowment Report 2023
https://www.dartmouth.edu/investments/docs/dartmouthendowmentreport2023.pdf
The largest philanthropic gift ever given to a United States college or university is the donation of $9.6 billion made by MacKenzie Scott to various organizations, including several universities, in 2020. Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, made the donation as part of her commitment to give away the majority of her wealth to charitable causes. The universities that received donations from Scott include historically black colleges and universities, community colleges, and research universities such as the University of California, San Diego, and Johns Hopkins University. The donation was considered significant not only for its size but also for its focus on supporting organizations that serve underrepresented and marginalized communities.
There are several standards and best practices that are generally followed by universities and colleges when accepting charitable gifts. These standards are designed to ensure that the gift is used effectively and that the interests of both the donor and the institution are protected. Some of the key standards include:
- Transparency and accountability: Universities and colleges are expected to be transparent about how gifts are used and to provide regular reports to donors on the impact of their gifts.
- Due diligence: Universities and colleges are expected to conduct due diligence on potential donors to ensure that their gifts do not create conflicts of interest or ethical concerns.
- Gift acceptance policies: Many universities and colleges have established gift acceptance policies that outline the types of gifts that will be accepted and the procedures for accepting them.
- Donor recognition: Universities and colleges are expected to recognize donors in an appropriate and meaningful way, while avoiding actions that could be seen as an endorsement of the donor’s business or political interests.
- Ethical fundraising: Universities and colleges are expected to follow ethical fundraising practices, including avoiding pressure tactics or misleading information, and ensuring that donors are aware of any tax implications of their gifts.
Overall, universities and colleges are expected to act in the best interests of both their institution and their donors, and to maintain high standards of transparency, accountability, and ethical conduct when accepting charitable gifts.
An Expanded Study of School Bond Elections in Michigan
November 3, 2026
Birmingham Public Schools: A proposed $240 million bond
Gallery: School Bond Referenda
As of January 2022, there were a few municipalities in the United States that allowed non-citizens to vote in local elections, but no entire states. These municipalities included:
San Francisco, California: Non-citizens are allowed to vote in school board elections.
Chicago, Illinois: Non-citizens are allowed to vote in school board elections.
Takoma Park, Maryland: Non-citizens are allowed to vote in local elections.
It’s worth noting that these policies may change over time as local governments make decisions regarding voting rights. For the most up-to-date information, it’s best to consult the specific laws and regulations of each municipality or state.
“Election Day, 1944” | Norman Rockwell for the Saturday Evening Post
School bond elections — either at county or district level — are processes through which communities vote to authorize the issuance of bonds to fund various projects and improvements in their local school districts. The elections determine the quality of educational settlements –new school buildings, renovating existing facilities, upgrading technology, and improving safety measures. The outcomes of these elections directly affect the quality of education and learning environments for students within the county. Successful bond measures can stimulate economic growth by creating jobs and attracting families to the area.
Community involvement and voter turnout are essential in determining the allocation of resources and shaping the quality of life for its citizens. In recent years, however, voter ambivalence about the education “industry” in general, the rise of home schooling and other cultural factors, complicate choices presented to voters.
New update alert! The 2022 update to the Trademark Assignment Dataset is now available online. Find 1.29 million trademark assignments, involving 2.28 million unique trademark properties issued by the USPTO between March 1952 and January 2023: https://t.co/njrDAbSpwB pic.twitter.com/GkAXrHoQ9T
— USPTO (@uspto) July 13, 2023
Welcome
Standards Michigan Group, LLC
455 East Eisenhower Parkway, Suite 300
Ann Arbor, MI 48108 USA
888-748-3670
DIRECTIONS
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
Layout mode
Predefined Skins
Custom Colors
Choose your skin color
Patterns Background
Images Background
error: Content is protected !!
Skip to content