The 2025 Healthy Green Schools & Colleges Virtual Fall Summit concluded with the final session on Thursday, November 6, with “Emerging Opportunities for Safely Incorporating AI into Facility Operations and Maintenance.”
This session was led by Craig Park, Associate Principal and Director of Digital Experience Design at Clark & Enersen. Park is a long-time technology strategist for education, healthcare, workplace, and civic facilities, and he brought a practical, systems-focused lens to how artificial intelligence (AI) can support, not replace, facilities teams.
The session explored the following themes.
Facilities Challenges AI Can Help Address
Park discussed AI’s potential around the challenges K-12 districts and higher education institutions are already facing. He highlighted several common pressures:
- Enrollment and budget shifts that strain capital planning and operations.
- Aging infrastructure and deferred maintenance backlogs that outpace available funding.
- Digital-native students and staff who expect robust, seamless technology in classrooms and institutional spaces.
- Sustainability and decarbonization goals (e.g., zero-carbon or near-zero targets by 2030–2035).
- Cybersecurity and physical safety, as more systems and devices become network-connected.
- Hybrid and blended learning, which adds complexity to classroom design and operations.
According to Park, AI should be viewed as a “coordination and insight engine” that helps unify data, prioritize action, and align operations with institutional goals.
Building an AI Strategy: Governance, Ethics, and Data
Park emphasized that successful AI adoption starts with clarity and governance, not technology:
- Define purpose first. Facilities and institutional leaders should articulate what they want AI to support.
- Break down data silos. Facilities, IT, capital planning, and academic systems all hold disparate information. AI is most powerful when it can connect these data sources.
- Create an AI governance task force. Park encouraged institutions to form cross-functional teams that set parameters for use, review progress, and modify their approach when necessary.
- Prioritize ethics and privacy. AI initiatives must respect student and staff privacy, and comply with regulations like FERPA.
- Commit to iteration. AI projects should be treated as pilots with clear success metrics, regular check-ins, and a willingness to sunset tools that don’t deliver value.
Emerging Tools and Use Cases for Facilities Teams
Park shared that, when he first wrote about AI and facilities in 2023, there were almost no tools purpose-built for the field. That has changed quickly.
He highlighted the following emerging AI technologies:
- CMMS and asset management platforms that are incorporating AI for smarter maintenance planning and insights.
- Energy management and digital twin solutions that optimize HVAC performance, detect issues earlier, and model energy use in real time.
- Workflow and “agentic” tools that can help coordinate tasks, assist with planning, and orchestrate complex processes across systems.
He also noted Praxis AI, an education-focused AI mentor platform designed to help capture institutional and facilities knowledge as experienced staff retire, and to support structured learning for newer team members.
AI tools tailored to facilities are now appearing and will continue to grow rapidly. Facilities leaders should expect to see many more options in the coming years and build the governance and strategy now to evaluate them effectively.