A summer planning guide for universities ready to make smart use of the space between semesters.
Commencement is behind you. The residence halls have cleared out. For a few months, your campus has something it almost never has: breathing room.
That window looks different for every institution. Some arrived here with a clear scope, engaged partners, and procurement already moving. Others are earlier in the process — still figuring out what makes sense to take on before fall. Both are reasonable places to be. What matters now is using the time you have well.
The context is worth keeping in mind: APPA estimates that deferred maintenance across U.S. higher education now exceeds $112 billion. According to a 2024 sector report from Moody’s Investors Service, colleges and universities will need $750 billion to $950 billion over the next decade to modernize and repair existing infrastructure. No single summer closes that gap. But a clear-eyed plan — one that’s honest about what’s achievable right now — builds the foundation for sustained progress.
Start with an Honest Walk-Through
Before settling on any project, walk the spaces. Not the quick tour you give prospective families — the real one. Look at the classrooms, study lounges, dining areas, and common spaces where students actually spend their time. You’re not looking for everything that needs fixing. You’re looking for what will make a meaningful difference and what can realistically be addressed before fall.
What to evaluate:
- Furniture condition — Visible wear, stained upholstery, and unstable seating affect how students perceive the investment you’re making in their experience. It’s also one of the more actionable categories within a tight timeline.
- Flooring and finishes — Carpet in high-traffic corridors, scuffed walls, dated restroom finishes. These details accumulate into a general impression of decline — or of care.
- Lighting — Outdated fixtures, inconsistent color temperatures, and dim study areas affect both mood and usability. Lighting upgrades often deliver high impact relative to cost.
- Technology integration — Do your classroom setups reflect how faculty and students actually work today? Power access, display placement, and connectivity are worth a close look.
- Space utilization — Are there rooms sitting underused while others are perpetually overbooked? Summer is the right time to assess whether your footprint is configured to serve you well.
Prioritize What Students and Faculty Actually Notice
Not everything can happen in one summer, and trying to do too much at once rarely serves anyone well. The more useful frame is: which spaces and improvements will have the clearest impact on the people who use them every day?
Research consistently shows that campus facility condition ranks among the top factors in enrollment decisions. Students and families notice when a campus feels well-maintained — and they notice when it doesn’t.
High-impact areas worth focusing on:
- Student-facing common areas — lounges, study spaces, dining halls. These are where prospective students form first impressions and current students decide whether they feel at home.
- Classrooms that serve multiple departments — shared spaces see the most wear and deliver the broadest visibility for your investment.
- Building entrances and lobbies — first impressions form quickly. A refreshed entry can shift the entire feel of a building without a full renovation.
- Wayfinding and signage — outdated directories and inconsistent signage create friction for everyone, especially during orientation when new students are finding their footing.
Think in Phases, Not Projects
One of the most common missteps is treating summer improvements as isolated fixes rather than part of a longer arc. A phased approach — tackling one building or zone each summer — builds momentum, distributes cost across budget cycles, and lets each round inform the next.
It also keeps the scope honest. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, higher education institutions spend over $6 billion annually on energy costs across 5 billion square feet of space, with an estimated 30% of that energy wasted. A thoughtful phased plan can fold in efficiency upgrades alongside cosmetic improvements, addressing both the visible and the operational over time.
Assess What’s Realistic Within Your Window
Summer is already underway, which means the most useful thing you can do right now is get clear on what’s actually achievable before fall — not what’s on the wish list.
That starts with an honest scope conversation with any partner you’re working with or evaluating. A strong design or FF&E partner should be able to tell you quickly what can be ordered, delivered, and installed within your timeline — and what’s more realistically positioned for winter break or next summer. Lead times on furniture, materials, and specialty items can run weeks to months. Understanding that early helps you plan for impact rather than disappointment.
A few questions worth asking any partner you’re evaluating:
- What’s your current availability for a project starting now, and what does a realistic timeline look like?
- What are the lead times on furniture and materials for a project of this scope?
- If we can’t complete everything this summer, how would you recommend phasing the work?
- What have you delivered for comparable institutions within a similar window?
If a partner can’t answer those questions clearly early in the conversation, that’s useful information too.
A Summer Well Spent
The quiet months don’t have to be idle months. The goal isn’t to tackle everything — it’s to make meaningful progress on the right things, with a clear picture of what’s achievable and partners who can deliver within the time you actually have.
Whether that’s a focused refresh of your highest-traffic spaces or a thorough assessment that sets up next summer’s work, a summer spent with intention is a semester ahead with spaces that work better for everyone in them.
Not sure where to start this summer?
Hillsman’s team specializes in helping institutions assess what’s achievable within the time and budget they actually have. We can walk your spaces with you, help you prioritize realistically, and build a phased plan that carries you into next summer and beyond.