The State of Facilities in Higher Education, 11th Edition

Now in its eleventh year of publication, Gordian’s State of Facilities in Higher Education draws on our database of 43,000 campus buildings, 1.1 billion gross square feet of space and upwards of $13.5 billion in operating budgets to analyze current campus trends. As the report enters its second decade, the higher ed universe is finding its footing in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Age-old notions of what a campus is and what it could be are evolving. A looming demographic cliff is changing the student population. Inflation is compressing operations budgets and making it more difficult to address ongoing facilities needs. The facilities workforce is shrinking.

This year’s State of Facilities in Higher Education considers the individual challenges of space, stewardship and staff, and the ways they intersect on campus.

Topics include:

• The ratio of space-to-enrollment growth
• The tension between the existing campus footprint and the shrinking need for physical space
• The degree to which facilities investments have rebounded since the pandemic
• The effect of inflation on facilities operational budgets
• A deep dive into the challenge of hiring and retaining facilities staff, and the creative approaches colleges and universities are taking to find and keep talent