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"What are you afraid of losing, when nothing in the world actually belongs to you." -- Marcus Aurelius

Security 400

November 3, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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“We worry about what a child will become tomorrow,

yet we forget that he is someone today.”

– Stacia Tauscher

 

Today we run a status check on the stream of technical and management standards evolving to assure the highest possible level of security in education communities.  The literature expands significantly from an assortment of national standards-setting bodies, trade associations, ad hoc consortia and open source standards developers.  CLICK HERE for a sample of our work in this domain.

School security is big business in the United States.   According to a report by Markets and Markets, the global school and campus security market size was valued at USD 14.0 billion in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 21.7 billion by 2025, at a combined annual growth rate of 7.2% during the forecast period.  Another report by Research And Markets estimates that the US school security market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 8% between 2020 and 2025, driven by factors such as increasing incidents of school violence, rising demand for access control and surveillance systems, and increasing government funding for school safety initiatives.

Because the pace of the combined annual growth rate of the school and campus security market is greater than the growth rate of the education “industry” itself, we’ve necessarily had to break down our approach to this topic into modules:

Security 100.   A survey of all the technical and management codes and standards for all educational settings — day care, K-12, higher education and university affiliated healthcare occupancies.

Security 200.   Queries into the most recent public consultations on the components and interoperability* of supporting technologies

Video surveillance: indoor and outdoor cameras, cameras with night vision and motion detection capabilities and cameras that can be integrated with other security systems for enhanced monitoring and control.

Access control: doors, remote locking, privacy and considerations for persons with disabilities.

Panic alarms: These devices allow staff and students to quickly and discreetly alert authorities in case of an emergency.

Metal detectors: These devices scan for weapons and other prohibited items as people enter the school.

Mass notification systems: These systems allow school administrators to quickly send emergency alerts and notifications to students, staff, and parents.

Intrusion detection systems: These systems use sensors to detect unauthorized entry and trigger an alarm.

GPS tracking systems: These systems allow school officials to monitor the location of school buses and track the movements of students during field trips and other off-campus activities.

Security 300.  Regulatory and management codes and standards; a great deal of which are self-referencing.

Security 400.  Advanced Topics.  NFPA 731 Standard for the Installation of Premises Security Systems

As always, we reckon first cost and long-term maintenance cost, including software maintenance for the information and communication technologies (i.e. anything with wires) installed in the United States.  Cybersecurity is outside our wheelhouse and beyond our expertise.  In order to do any of the foregoing reasonably well, we have to leave cybersecurity standards to others.

Case Study: Inside The Safest School In America

Bob Hope Primary School Kadena Air Base

Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association

 


Education Community Safety catalog is one of the fast-growing catalogs of best practice literature.  In developing district security plans, K-12 school leaders stress that school safety is a cross-functional responsibility and every individual’s participation drives the success of overall safety protocols.  We link a small sample below and update ahead of every Security colloquium.

Artificial Intelligence Tries (and Fails) to Detect Weapons in School

Could AI be the future of preventing school shootings?

Executive Order 13929 of June 16, 2020 Safe Policing for Safe Communities

Clery Act

National Center for Education Statistics: School Safety and Security Measures

International Code Council

2021 International Building Code

Section 1010.1.9.4 Locks and latches

Section 1010.2.13 Delayed egress.

Section 1010.2.14 Controlled egress doors in Groups I-1 and I-2.

Free Access: NFPA 72 National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code

Free Access: NFPA 731 Standard for the Installation of Premises Security Systems

IEEE: Design and Implementation of Campus Security System Based on Internet of Things

APCO/NENA 2.105 Emergency Incident Data Document 

C-TECC Tactical Emergency Casualty Care Guidelines

Department of Transportation Emergency Response Guidebook 2016

NENA-STA-004.1-2014 Next Generation United States Civic Location Data Exchange Format

Example Emergency Management and Disaster Preparedness Plan (Tougaloo College,  Jackson, Mississippi)

Partner Alliance for Safer Schools

Federal Bureau of Investigation Academia Program

Most Dangerous Universities in America

Federal Bureau of Investigation: Uniform Crime Reporting Program

ICYMI: Guide to Campus Security


* Interoperability refers to the ability of different technologies or systems to communicate and work together seamlessly. In the context of school security technologies, interoperability can help improve the effectiveness of security systems and make it easier for school personnel to manage and respond to potential security threats.  Here’s what we look for:

  1. Standardization: By standardizing communication protocols and data formats, school security technologies can be made more compatible with each other, making it easier for different systems to communicate and share information.
  2. Integration: School security technologies can be integrated with each other to provide a more comprehensive security solution. For example, access control systems can be integrated with video surveillance systems to automatically trigger alerts when an unauthorized person enters a restricted area.
  3. Open Architecture: Open architecture solutions enable different security systems to be connected and communicate with each other regardless of their manufacturer or supplier. This approach makes it easier to integrate different technologies and avoid vendor lock-in.
  4. Cloud-based Solutions: Cloud-based security solutions can enable interoperability by providing a centralized platform for managing and monitoring different security systems. This approach can also simplify the deployment of security technologies across multiple locations.
  5. Collaboration: School security technology providers can work together to develop interoperability standards and best practices that can be adopted across the industry. Collaboration can help drive innovation and improve the effectiveness of security systems.

 

 

 

Ædificare & Utilization

November 3, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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New Construction Release Schedule: https://www.census.gov/construction/c30/release.html

Reports are usually released at 10 AM EST the first day of every month except this month. (May 2026)


There’s been a significant redesign of the look and feel of the monthly Census Bureau reports construction activity. Today we sort through the rather more granular statistics that inform our recommendations for facility spend.

 


December 1, 2025

It has been 20 years since we began tracking educational settlement facility spend.  Starting this month we will examine federal government data together with the best available data about space utilization to enlighten our response to the perfectly reasonable question: “Are we over-building or under-building or building ineffectively”.  Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.

United States: Schools of Architecture

The Society for College and University Planning (Ann Arbor, Michigan)

National Center for Education Statistics

The Financial Impact of Architectural Design: Balancing Aesthetics and Budget in Modern Construction

 

Homeschooling

2022 International Existing Building Code 

  • University College London

As reported by the US Department of Commerce Census Bureau the value of construction put in place by August 2025 by the US education industry proceeded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $137.604 billion.  This number does not include renovation for projects under 50,000 square feet and new construction in university-affiliated health care delivery enterprises.   Reports are released two months after calendar month.  The complete report is available at the link below:

MONTHLY CONSTRUCTION SPENDING August 2025 (released two months after calendar month)

 


 


This spend makes the US education facilities industry (which includes colleges, universities, technical/vocational and K-12 schools, most university-affiliated medical research and healthcare delivery enterprises, etc.) the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States after commercial property; and fairly close.  For perspective consider total public + private construction ranked according to the tabulation most recently released:

$137.604 billion| Education Facilities

$155.728 billion | Power (Note data center buildout)

$69.625 billion | Healthcare

Keep in mind that inflation figures into the elevated dollar figures.  Overall — including construction, energy, custodial services, furnishings, security. etc., — the non-instructional spend plus the construction spend of the US education facilities is running at a rate of about $300 – $500 billion per year.

LIVE: A selection of construction cameras at  US schools, colleges and universities

Architectural Billings

We typically pick through the new data set; looking for clues relevant to real asset spend decisions.  Finally, we encourage the education facilities industry to contribute to the accuracy of these monthly reports by responding the US Census Bureau’s data gathering contractors.

Reconstruction of Ancient Agora

 

As surely as people are born, grow wealthy and die with extra cash,

there will be a home for that cash to sustain their memory and to steer

the cultural heritage of the next generation in beautiful settings.

More

National Center for Educational Statistics

AIA: Billings Index shows but remains strong May 2022

National Center for Education Statistics

Sightlines: Capital Investment College Facilities

OxBlue: Time-Lapse Construction Cameras for Education

Architectural Billing Index

IBISWorld Education Sector

US Census Bureau Form F-33 Survey of School System Finances

American School & University

New Report from Occuspace Finds U.S. Campuses Face Significant Underutilization

Global Consistency in Presenting Construction & Life Cycle Costs

Carnegie Classifications

Bulletin Board

November 3, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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FCC Environmental review of communications infrastructure | November 18

Relevant to our lament on campus antennas, towers, rooftop installations and permitting

Dimidia veritas, tota mendacium est


 

NIST RFI: Medical Metrology and Standards | November 30

NFPA 70 National Electrical Code | Modular Data Centers — Proposed TIA 1949  October 30

tFERC Cybersecurity Monitoring of Electric Infrastructure | Comments due December 14

Cornell Donor Revolt: No Confidence Vote on President

CUNY raises record $312 million

University of Minnesota plans $225 million reduction

Teachers’ Unions Face More Competition for Influence in School Board Elections

Foreign Gifts | Donor Privacy

Trump Account Proposed Regulations | October 20, 2026

University of Notre Dame: Teaching with the Columbus Murals

DOE — Bulk-Power System Security RFI | October 9

Massachusetts Fire Safety Advisory Meeting October 14

RFI: Electromagnetic Fields, Radiofrequency Radiation & Wireless Radiation Exposure | October 21

FERC Cybersecurity Monitoring of Electric Infrastructure | Comments due December 14

NIST SP 800-239 — AI Data Center Security Analysis | September 25

Public consultation on NERC computational-load standard open until September 18

NIST SP 800-209 Rev. 1 — Security Guidelines for Storage Infrastructure | September 8

NFPA 70 | TIA from AHRI on GFCI protection on HVAC equipment | September 6


“Labor omnia vicit improbus” (trans. ‘Steady, unyielding labor conquered all things’)

Georgics, Book I — Publius Vergilius Maro

Standards exist to sustain the ordinary rhythms of civilization.  Behind every meal, classroom, laboratory, concert, hospital, farm, playing field and family home stands a network of standards that quietly enables daily life. Our work is to understand, improve and explain those standards in service to the educational settlements they support. ANSI Standards Action



NIST | USPTO | ANSI | IEEE | ICC | ASTM | ASHRAE | UL | TIA | ASME | ASCE | AGA

Michigan Standards Developers : NSF | ACI | NETA | ASABE | HL7 | RIA | JCSEE | BIFMA | PJRFSI | SAE

Global: SA | BSA | NSAI | CSA | CEN & CENELEC | ISO & IEC*


 

APPA was founded at the University of Michigan| See our ABOUT

 

 


* ISO and IEC have opted out of the X-social media platforms.  FYI: X is 13 times the size of BlueSky in terms of scale and reach.

Gallery: School Bond Referenda

November 3, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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In terms of total spend, the US elementary and secondary school industry is about twice the size of the higher education industry according to IBISWorld. About $100 billion is in play every year for both (which we cover during our Ædificare colloquia); with higher education spending only half of what elementary and secondary school systems spend on facilities.

Note that some districts are including construction for faculty housing.

Our focus remains on applying global standard to create educational settlements that are safer, simpler, lower-cost and longer-lasting — not on the hurly-burly of local school bond elections.  We recommend consulting the coverage in American School & University for more detailed and more timely information.




“GV Brew”

November 2, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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ALLENDALE WEATHER

Grand Valley State University Statement of Financial Position 2023: $1.057B

Michigan West

Located on the First Floor of the Mary Idema Pew Library*

Facilities Services

Moving into college vlog

Moving into Grand Valley State University | Kent County Michigan

Grand Valley State University

Facilities Services

* Proposed GVSU Library to be named for Mary Idema Pew

Tyme

November 2, 2026
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“Tyme” was used in Middle English and earlier forms of the language, and it was commonly found in historical texts, poetry, and manuscripts of that time. It was used to refer to the passage of time, an era, or a specific moment in history.

“Steam alarm clock with a polyphonic whistle” 2004 Jacek Yerka

Today at 16:00 UTC we refresh our understanding of the technical standards for the timing-systems that maintain the temporal framework for daily life in education communities.  The campus clock continues as a monument of beauty and structure even though digitization of everything has rendered the central community clock redundant.

Most leading practice discovery (and innovation) is happening with the Network Time Protocols (NTP) that synchronize the time stamps of widely separated data centers.  In operation since before 1985, NTP is one of the oldest Internet protocols in current use and underlies the Internet of Things build out.  NTP is particularly important in maintaining accurate time stamps for safety system coordination and for time stamps on email log messages.

Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.

Time

More

National Institute of Standards and Technology: What is Time?

Sapienza University of Rome: Clock Synchronization

IEEE Standard 1588: Precision Clock Synchronization Protocol for Networked Measurement and Control Systems

National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code

Athletics

Fully automatic time (Sport)

Permanent RFID Timing System in a Track and Field Athletic Stadium for Training and Analysing Purposes

USA Swimming: Time Standards

Language 600

November 2, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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Starting from the canonicals of any standard suitable for optimizing innovation (and incorporation by reference into public law) — Title, Scope, Purpose and Definitions — we will turn our attention to the Call for Public Comment by NIST which is open until July 28th.

Innovation and Competitiveness in Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is built upon language, but the meaning of “standard language” becomes complicated when machines learn from billions of human expressions. Unlike electrical, building or safety standards, language standards are rarely governed by a single authority. Dictionaries, style manuals, universities, publishers, governments and professional societies establish conventions, while ordinary speakers continuously modify them. AI systems operate in the middle of this tension between prescription and usage.

Training data. Large language models learn statistical patterns from books, websites, journalism, academic literature, software and other sources. The composition of that material influences what the model recognizes as normal, authoritative or acceptable language. Decisions about inclusion, exclusion and weighting can therefore function as de facto standards, even when no formal standards organization is involved.

 Grammar and intelligibility. AI can reinforce conventional spelling, syntax and technical terminology, making communication across institutions and borders easier. This is particularly valuable in engineering, medicine, law and education, where small differences in terminology can have substantial consequences. Yet excessive normalization may flatten dialect, regional vocabulary and inherited forms of expression.

Meaning. Words change over time and contested words often carry political, cultural or institutional assumptions. When an AI system chooses one definition over another, it may unintentionally appear to settle a dispute that society itself has not settled. Transparency about ambiguity is therefore an important characteristic of trustworthy AI.

Tchnical standardization. AI increasingly depends upon formal vocabularies, ontologies, metadata, machine-readable definitions and interoperability protocols. Standards organizations such as International Organization for Standardization, IEEE and National Institute of Standards and Technology have roles in developing frameworks through which AI systems can be evaluated and governed.

Above all we still face the question: Who gets to set the language standard? Should AI reflect contemporary majority usage, established literary traditions, professional terminology, institutional style or the language of particular communities? Probably some combination is unavoidable.

For Standards Michigan, the deeper question may be this: AI does not merely follow language standards; through widespread daily use, it may increasingly help create them. If millions of students, teachers, engineers and institutions rely upon AI to write and interpret language, the model’s linguistic choices can become conventions themselves. Understanding how those choices are made may therefore become as important as understanding the standards written by traditional standards-setting bodies.

 

S. 542: English Language Unity Act of 2025

November 2, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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Language

November 2026 Update

S. 542 remains pending in the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.  Executive Order 14224 and subsequent Department of Justice guidance  have meanwhile advanced federal English-language policy administratively. Neither measure resolves the separate challenge of maintaining precise, consistent technical English across engineering standards, legislation, scientific literature and AI-generated documents.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon | National Geographic

Related:

The White House: Designating English as the Official Language of The United States

H.R. 9742 (IH) – English Language Proficiency Act

Standardize: Aligning Language Models with Expert-Defined Standards for Content Generation

 

The language of the Internet is shaped by large language models, international standards, and software platforms developed by people from many linguistic backgrounds. The challenge is not that many contributors are non-native English speakers — and that is a serious cultural problem — the challenge is ensuring that, despite the differences in how English is taught, understood and used — technical English remains precise, stable, and consistently interpreted.

Ambiguous wording, subtle shifts in meaning, or differing cultural assumptions can introduce confusion into engineering, law, medicine, and public policy when replicated at Internet scale. The remedy is not linguistic exclusivity but stronger standards: carefully defined vocabularies, consensus terminology, authoritative style guides, and rigorous editorial review by diverse experts.

English has become the principal working language of science, engineering, and commerce because it supports a vast body of technical literature and international collaboration. Preserving its precision is therefore a matter of stewardship. As AI systems increasingly generate and interpret technical information, maintaining a common, standards-based engineering English will become as important as maintaining reliable communication networks themselves.

Tokens

All Hallows

November 2, 2026
mike@standardsmichigan.com
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_from_Fear_(painting)#/media/File:%22Freedom_from_Fear%22_-_NARA_-_513538.jpg

“Freedom from Fear” 1943 | Norman Rockwell

Halloween celebrates the imagination and exuberance of the young. All Saints’ Day remembers those whose lives and labors made their world possible. Between these two observances lies much of the purpose of an educational settlement: to provide beautiful, safe and enduring places where young people may form friendships, fall in love, raise families and eventually leave something of value to generations they will never know.

Halloween

Healthy Halloween Snack Spooktacular

Halloween Safety Tips

Mortuary Science

“The Halloween Problem” | Recursive Self-Improvement

Halloween Cooking

Mortuary Arts

For all the Saints – Sine Nomine

Spooky Specialties

Monster Culture

Día de los Muertos

Refrigeration Systems: Cadaver Preservation

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