Weekly Updates

Burbio School Tracker 8/11: System Check

Written by Dennis Roche | Aug 11, 2026, 1:30:00 PM

1. Burbio continues the expansion of its district-level K-12 Curriculum Tracker, featuring curriculum usage and adoptions for districts nationwide. The Curriculum Tracker notes curriculum type (launching with ELA, Math, Social Studies and Science) and evaluation stage, from early consideration through pilots to adoption. The chart below provides a look at the market penetration of select ELA curriculum providers across 160 Texas districts covering 3.3 million students:

 

 

2. Burbio offers both an API and a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for accessing our data. The MCP enables clients to use LLMs to analyze Burbio's district intelligence alongside their own data, uncovering opportunities through natural language queries. One use case for the MCP is prompting Burbio's continually updated district contact data to uncover staff turnover. For example, below are a few districts where a new technology director was added to the district website in the last 30 days:

This monitoring can apply to any district role and can be mapped to everything from current customers to opportunity accounts. In addition, the tool allows for simple lookups of individual district-level staff, as well as syncing updated contact information with existing client data.

3. HVAC is one of the largest and most common building systems in K-12 education. This week we examine 675 district discussions across 47 states since May 5 about HVAC projects, repairs, and replacements. Here are the trends we found:

  • Chillers stand out among HVAC components: Chiller replacement and repair are cited more often than any other specific subsystem, including boilers, rooftop units, and controls. The map above presents 112 districts serving 2.1 million students that mentioned chillers since May.
  • Bonds are one financing path for HVAC work: When HVAC projects are included in bond programs, they are typically part of broader capital packages that also address roofing, safety, accessibility, or other facility needs.
  • Equipment age is a common reason for replacement: Districts that specify a reason for HVAC work frequently reference systems that have reached or exceeded their expected service life.
  • Indoor air quality is a less common but distinct driver: A segment of districts frame HVAC investments around indoor air quality, often in connection with compliance, health, or learning-environment considerations.
  • Equipment failures can accelerate procurement: Major boiler or chiller failures occasionally lead districts to move directly to emergency repairs or replacement, rather than following a typical evaluation and competitive procurement process.
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