Why Kansas School Districts Are Choosing Design-Build for School Construction

Whether your district is planning a new school, renovating an existing campus, or addressing aging infrastructure, one decision will shape the success of the entire project: the construction delivery method.

Across Kansas, more school districts are evaluating design-build because it creates greater collaboration, accountability, and budget certainty. Rather than managing separate contracts for design and construction, districts work with one integrated team focused on achieving the same goals.

Kansas School Leaders Face Growing Facility Challenges

Today’s school leaders are balancing more than construction projects. They’re making long-term decisions while navigating aging facilities, deferred maintenance, limited funding, evolving educational needs, and increasing expectations from students, staff, school boards, and taxpayers.

With so much at stake, selecting the right school construction partner can reduce project risk and help projects stay aligned with your district’s budget, schedule, and vision.

As a former Kansas superintendent with more than 23 years serving public schools, I’ve experienced the challenges of leading a district through major construction projects. That’s why I appreciate Performance Services‘ approach. Every project comes with a commitment to guaranteed design, guaranteed results, and no change orders within the agreed scope. This gave me confidence as a school leader that I wouldn’t be dealing with unexpected costs, difficult conversations with the board, or uncertainty about who was responsible when challenges arose. Instead, I could keep my attention where it belonged—on students, staff, and my community.

Why More Kansas School Districts Are Considering Design-Build

Every district has different priorities. Some are modernizing classrooms. Others are building career and technical education spaces, investing in modern athletic complexes,  improving campus safety, replacing outdated building systems, or planning district-wide facility improvements.

Regardless of the project, the delivery method still plays a significant role in the outcome. With design-build, the planning, architecture, engineering, and construction disciplines work together from the beginning under one contract. This collaborative approach helps reduce surprises, improve communication, and keep everyone focused on delivering the district’s goals.

Benefits of Design-Build for K-12 School Construction

There are many benefits of design-build, but below are just a few that are most important for school officials to consider.

• Public-Owner Confidence: From start to finish, your board and community can trust that every decision is guided by what’s best for students and that their investment is creating learning environments that meet the needs of both students and staff.
• Educational Planning: Construction solutions are tailored to support both current instructional needs and future growth for your school district.
• Sole Accountability: With one accountable partner overseeing the entire project, you can focus on your role as an educational leader and not have to act as a construction manager.
• Vendor Independence: You have the ability to still work with your local teams and contractors, while having the benefits of one contract and one accountable partner.
• On Going Communication: Our team prioritizes customer satisfaction through the entirety of the project, allowing space for feedback and providing frequent project updates.
• Successful Outcomes: One contract, on time, on budget with no change orders.

Why One Contract Makes a Difference

Many school construction projects still follow the traditional design-bid-build process, where architects and contractors work under separate contracts. While familiar, this approach can lead to communication gaps, change orders, and uncertainty when unexpected issues arise.

As a superintendent, you find yourself many times stuck in the middle, without the background and knowledge necessary to address specific construction issues or where that responsibility lies. Many times, this can lead to the school taking on additional change orders or budget amendments that erode trust in the process. The community sees this as poor planning on your part, yet you were trying to trust the traditional process.

By bringing planning, design, and construction together under a single contract, school leaders can eliminate these risks. If you choose a partner like Performance Services, our team provides facility planning, educational consulting, architecture, engineering, construction, and long-term performance assurance under one contract.

Hear how one contract leads to more successful project outcomes.

Plan Your Next Kansas School Construction or Renovation Project

The most successful projects begin long before construction starts. Evaluating delivery methods early helps Kansas school districts make informed decisions that lead to better outcomes—from budget and scheduling to facility performance and long-term value.

Additionally, all Kansas public school districts are required by law to update and publish their district needs analyses annually, and these analyses must be vetted by the board. In my role, I find myself helping many of our brand-new superintendents with this process, bridging students and academic goals to facility needs in a single document.

Let our team help you with your required annual needs, district analysis, or a full facility review. Scan below to get started.