News & Insights
Photo courtesy of: Greg Land
Ask the Expert is our monthly Q&A series where we sit down with leaders across B&D to explore best practices shaping the future of K-12 and municipalities. This month, we’re featuring Senior Project Manager Kyle Brower, who brings more than a decade of experience supporting large-scale capital improvement programs. With extensive experience in California’s Oakland Unified School District and Redwood City School District, Kyle shares how school bond programs come to life—and how districts can manage them transparently, prioritize effectively, and strengthen community confidence along the way.
B&D: Tell us a bit about your background. What led you to B&D?
Kyle Brower: I actually started my career in western Pennsylvania working for a materials testing lab on the contractor side. In 2012, I moved to California to join SGI Construction Management as a project engineer with the Oakland Unified School District. When that contract wrapped up in 2017, B&D came on as the new program management consultant, and that’s when I first got to know the firm. Not long after, I joined B&D as an assistant project manager. I spent a year continuing work in Oakland, then moved to support the Redwood City School District for a few years before returning to Oakland in 2021—and that’s where I’ve been ever since.
B&D: For readers new to the topic, what exactly is a bond program, and how does it work in a public-school context?
KB: Think of a bond program as a community investment in local schools. When a district wants to improve or repair its facilities—say, fix leaky roofs, build new classrooms, or modernize technology—it can’t usually afford to pay for all of that upfront. So, it asks voters to approve a bond measure. If the measure passes, the district can raise money by selling bonds, kind of like taking out a loan that will be repaid over time through property taxes. Those funds can only be used for the specific projects voters were promised—things like construction, renovations, or safety upgrades. The district then creates a plan that outlines which projects to tackle first and how to manage the funding responsibly. It’s a public process, which means transparency and community trust are absolutely essential every step of the way.
B&D: With so many schools and needs, how do you prioritize?
KB: It’s a balance between structure and flexibility. The facilities master plan gives us a roadmap of priorities, but real life always adds layers—things like past commitments to certain communities, leadership changes, or evolving needs. So, we treat it as an ongoing conversation between the district, the board, and the community. By the time projects reach our team, many priorities are already defined, but we help guide discussions and adjust plans as conditions change.
B&D: For districts launching their first bond program, what advice would you give?
KB: Start by really understanding the district’s history and the needs of each community you serve. That background is critical when you’re trying to build trust and support for a new bond measure. Then, put systems in place to document decisions clearly and communicate consistently. Transparency is everything—both for accountability and for long-term success. I also think it helps to think like an auditor. I ask myself, “If someone looked back at this decision later, would they understand why I made it?” That mindset keeps me organized and helps create a framework for mentoring newer team members, too.
Thank you again to Kyle for participating in Ask the Expert. If you have a topic you’d like one of our experts to address in a future issue, submit them here.
