A sustainability diagram of PS 62, the net zero school currently under construction in Staten Island | Image courtesy SOM / © SOM

In June UO kicked off their new Profiles in Public Service series by interviewing Jeffrey Roth, the Assistant Commissioner for Management Initiatives at the New York City Fire Department. Roth’s work leveraging the City’s robust cache of data to implement an analytics-based approach to fire prevention exemplifies the aim of this series: to make visible how local government agencies with less recognized connections to the built environment shape the physical and lived experience of the city. Each profile highlights the work of individual public servants and illuminates the complex workings of city government.

With over 1,800 schools catering to 1.1 million students, New York City’s school system not only ranks as the largest in the United States; it also creates and maintains some of the most important civic institutions in the five boroughs. Bruce Barrett, a registered architect and the Vice President for Architecture & Engineering at the City’s School Construction Authority, manages the design process that produces new schools for a growing city and ensures that existing assets are maintained and adapted to serve students best. Here, Barrett explains the process of her unique agency that drives a massive volume of work, how education policy affects design approaches, and the importance of creating inspiring places for learning....Continue Reading

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