Poolesville High School students and parents expressed concerns about the ongoing construction and how it has affected students’ health.
Construction has not only physically affected the school, making it difficult and inaccessible for students to get to class, but also physically affects the students themselves. Bella Sabett, a senior at Poolesville High School, expressed how she got styes due to dust from the construction.
“When the wind would blow, dust would fly in my eyes near the science building,” she said. The science building had an open scaffolding up until this year, but they recently placed roofing over top of the pathway.
Yehun Cho, another senior, described the construction as limiting and disruptive. Areas such as the auditorium and the old main entrances are blocked off, which affects extracurriculars that require space outside of the school day. Cho is the president of Poolesville’s Dance Club and she described the difficulty of finding spaces to use for practices.
In addition, she stated that construction limits walkability during the school day and is very inaccessible for those with disabilities.
 

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ – Many teachers and parents spoke about the multitude of issues facing the district during this week’s South Orange-Maplewood (SOMA) Board of Education (BOE).

President of the South Orange Maplewood Education Association (SOMEA) Rocio Lopez told Taylor that she wasn’t being apprised of policies and SOMEA must be kept informed.

SOMEA Vice President Shira Lincoln recounted her experience with asbestos in her classroom. She shared that she is a cancer survivor and being around asbestos is especially harmful for her. She told the BOE that the buildings have to be maintained. “The expense of good and efficient building maintenance is nominal in comparison to the health and welfare of the children and adults who spend a good portion of their lives in these buildings.”

Margaret Pickron said she supports Intentional Integration but opposes D leveling. She listed some of the other district challenges and implored the BOT to focus on those. “Our district is facing a tidal wave of change at this moment from the integration plan to rectifying decades of harm from the Teachers College ELA curriculum, which undoubtedly has contributed to our districts shameful achievement gaps. In addition, we are facing a capital crisis with buildings that are quite literally falling apart and need an additional $200 million to repair beyond the Long Range Facility Plan.” She urged the BOE to handle those things before considering the D leveling policy.

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. – More than 50 people including parents, Washoe County School District staff, board members, local teachers, and longtime residents filled the Duffield Theatre at the Incline Village High School on the evening of October 12 to discuss the School District’s Facility Modernization Plan in the hopes of creating some guidelines for a working group that can help move the District forward regarding its capital improvement options for Incline’s schools.

The District has held more than two dozen public meetings throughout the region over the past year to discuss the FMP and its potential outcomes while also collecting input from the community before any decisions are made.

The District hired CannonDesign to help complete a comprehensive facility assessment and assist in a transparent planning process with key stakeholders. At the October 12 meeting, outside consultant Margaret Schultz facilitated the meeting, showing a presentation that noted the key takeaways from the April 5 and May 3 meetings and ensured the audience that “any change that takes place needs your input”. She then said that the goal of the meeting was to create guidelines for a working group, and wanted the audience’s input on who the membership should be.

During the first week of school, temperatures soared into the 90s causing sweltering heat in some of Newark’s oldest buildings with no air conditioners and faulty water fountains.  
Parents packed frozen water bottles for their children to cool off during the day while others wondered why some classrooms in New Jersey’s largest school system were unprepared to deal with high temperatures. 
“No air conditioner in these schools is crazy,” wrote Jacquetta Thomas last month in a Facebook group after her grandson stained his polo shirt with blood due to a nosebleed caused by the heat. A handful of parents responded to Thomas’ post with their own concerns about hot classrooms and deteriorating conditions in city schools. 
But this wasn’t the first time that Newark students dealt with uncomfortable conditions in city classrooms.
Newark’s public school buildings are among the oldest in the state, and Superintendent Roger León estimated last month that it would take more than $2 billion to fully repair and update them. The state is responsible for funding school construction projects in high-poverty districts like Newark, but a judge in a long-standing legal case said the state has not created a long-term financing plan to support the work. 
 

WARWICK, R.I. (WPRI) — Students can return to school at E.T. Wyman Elementary on Tuesday after a three-day closure, Warwick Superintendent Lynn Dambruch told 12 News.

Students were told to stay home on Wednesday morning as a precautionary measure after a boiler backfired, shooting soot and smoke throughout parts of the building. The school switched to virtual learning while cleaning and air quality testing was conducted.

Air quality test results showed it was safe for students and staff to return to school as of Friday afternoon. Monday was a pre-planned professional development day for teachers, so students were scheduled to be off from school.

“[The boiler] hasn’t really been a problem in the past, but you have to understand that our schools are aging and all of the boilers and a lot of the equipment in schools are failing,” Dambruch said. “We repair them to keep them up and inspect them but this was a surprise.”

The superintendent said the district has begun replacing boiler systems in schools and are targeting the ones that were in worst condition first.

Darlene Netcoh, president of the Warwick Teacher’s Union, said it is a challenge to switch to virtual learning for elementary school students so early in the year.

The Greater Latrobe School District’s recently adopted facilities master plan continues to spark discord from taxpayers as several took the opportunity to speak out Tuesday against tax increases attached to the plan.

During the portion of public comment when those in attendance may speak on any subject, several people got up and spoke out against the board’s decision to plan, design and construct new facilities rather than just simply maintain the buildings they have. Both options presented to the board and recommended by the facilities, operations and planning committee involved a significant and long-term tax increase.

Nick Carota, a 1968 graduate of Greater Latrobe, said he wanted to have an open mind about the process, but he is concerned that the tax increases could be a burden on too many taxpayers, a burden that they just can’t handle.

It is estimated that tax increases of up to 2.5 mills would be required yearly for anywhere from 10 to 15 years.

Governor Kathy Hochul signed the “Safe Schools by Design Act” that will require all school districts’ five-year capital facilities plans to consider incorporating design principles that will provide a safe, secure, and healthy school environment. The legislation also expands eligible expenses for Extended Day and School Violence Prevention Grants to include programs that facilitate and promote community involvement in school facility planning.

“A safe school environment is an essential component to providing the best education for our students,” Governor Hochul said. “This legislation highlights our commitment to our students and educators by ensuring that health and safety are considered at the outset of all school construction projects.”

Current law requires that five-year capital facilities plans are developed by each school district to include a building inventory, estimated expenses for building construction, repairs, or renovation, and estimated expenses for building maintenance and energy consumption.

Legislation S.2629A/A.286A amends the education law by requiring that school districts consider the incorporation of design principles and strategies, pursuant to guidance issued by the Commissioner of Education, in their five-year capital plan as part of a comprehensive approach to providing a healthy, secure, and safe school environment. In addition, the legislation includes programs which facilitate and promote community involvement in school facility planning to be eligible expenses for Extended Day and School Violence Prevention Grants.

A key state fiscal panel approved a sharp increase in state borrowing for the next year as fiscal leaders look for ways to offset a projected structural deficit while improving schools and aging buildings and infrastructure.

The recommended $500 million increase over anticipated levels comes as Gov. Wes Moore (D) and others express concerns about the state’s fiscal future. It also represents a potential reduction of cash once intended for capital projects.

State Budget Secretary Helene Grady said the additional borrowing would help offset projected structural deficits and limit drastic changes to the current capital spending plan.

The state’s Board of Revenue estimates decreased state revenue estimates in March and September.

That means less cash on hand to pay for projects as they come up.

“Knowing that we cannot rely on PAYGO funds at this point, the alternative to increasing [general obligation] debt would be to significantly reduce the capital program which we view as neither smart nor feasible,” Grady said.

State agencies have requested more than $15 billion in projects for the coming five-year period, Grady said.

RICHMOND, Va. -- A proposal to address fire safety within Richmond Public Schools sparked a heated disagreement among school board members Monday night.
The Richmond Education Association (REA), a union that represents RPS employees, drafted a resolution requesting that the school board adopt policies to ensure compliance with the statewide fire prevention code.
exchange
A proposal to address fire safety within Richmond Public Schools sparked a heated disagreement among school board members Monday night.
Screen Shot 2023-10-17 at 4.37.23 PM.png
By: Tyler LaynePosted at 6:21 PM, Oct 17, 2023 and last updated 8:36 PM, Oct 17, 2023
RICHMOND, Va. -- A proposal to address fire safety within Richmond Public Schools sparked a heated disagreement among school board members Monday night.
The Richmond Education Association (REA), a union that represents RPS employees, drafted a resolution requesting that the school board adopt policies to ensure compliance with the statewide fire prevention code.
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The proposal followed a CBS 6 report which showed 70% of Richmond schools were in violation of the fire code as of August 21, the first day of school, according to school fire inspection reports obtained through a public records request.
190 total violations were cited.
Beth Almore, an RPS teacher and member of REA, spoke at Monday's meeting in support of the resolution. She brought with her a picture of her aunt who she said died from smoke inhalation during a fire.
“When I saw the reports that there were 190 fire code violations, yes, I would describe my reaction as ‘shock,'" Almore said. "Particularly in buildings in such an advanced state of disrepair as we have in the city, it is incumbent upon us to adhere more strictly to the fire code than other localities."
On September 18, Richmond Fire Chief Melvin Carter penned a letter to Superintendent Jason Kamras stating none of the 190 violations cited during the inspection period would have prevented schools from opening.
 

SNOW HILL, Md. – Due to the lack of state funding for design plans, the Worcester County Commissioners voted on Tuesday to pause construction of the new Buckingham Elementary School.

Worcester County Government staff members completed an internal review of the Capital Improvement Plan and discovered an irregularity. It was then that they contacted school Board of Education officials, who confirmed that they had known since February 2023 that the state would not allocate any funds for the design or construction of the new school.

“The commissioners understand the concerns of parents and the community and remain committed to the BES project,” Commissioner President Chip Bertino said. “Before moving the project forward, however, it is incumbent upon the BOE to take the necessary steps to determine a path forward.

Bertino added that the commissions were not aware that no state funding was available, even as plans continued moving forward.

FRANKLIN, Vt. (WCAX) - Many Vermont school buildings are outdated and in need of upgrades. The state stopped funding construction projects in 2007, so schools are left to figure out different ways to get their buildings up to snuff.

The Franklin Central School is home to 146 students in rural northwestern Vermont, and district leaders say it’s been a tight squeeze since the day the doors opened.

“They are all tucked right in there tightly, and there is no space for preschool. They share that room with music class,” Missisquoi Valley Supervisory Union Superintendent Julie Regimbal said.

The building was constructed in 1992 when the largest influx was 24 preschool students per year. The district is using $4.1 million of its $7.9 million federal pandemic funds to upgrade the building. They’re adding 6,000 square feet of new space and renovating an additional 2,000. The goal is to meet the basic needs of students who could benefit from some legroom, especially after the pandemic.

“This will allow for a dedicated preschool service classroom. We wanted more options for OT, PT and psychological services, but having preschool have its own dedicated space supports our youngest, more vulnerable students,” said Regimbal.

She says adding space for psychological services will be especially helpful for kids who are struggling, noting oftentimes students receive support in one room separated by dividers. The project will be completed by next fall.

Meanwhile, in northeastern Vermont, leaders say the 30-year-old Coventry Village school is bursting at its seams, too. Sarah Bathalon, who sits on the local school board, says the school currently has 137 students but held 150 at its peak.

“We need more one-on-one spaces, individual speech rooms, and special ed rooms. The ways we’ve taught have changed from 30 years ago,” said Bathalon.

Hurricane Ian damage continues to be repaired by the School District of Lee County.
The school board received an in-depth review of where the district stands in regards to damages and recovery, as well as the financial impact and recovery during a meeting on Oct. 2.
DAMAGES AND RECOVERY
Maintenance Services Assistant Director Toni Dent-McNair said the Operations Department received 2,317 total service requests. Of those 1,713 have been closed leaving 604 still in progress.
“Advancements are made daily. As of last Friday (Sept. 29) an additional 11 were completed reducing to 593. This means we have now completed over 74%,” she said.
Damage was sustained throughout all district sites with the most common being restoration of campus roofs, drywall, floors, ceiling tiles, canopies, sunshades, athletic fields and fencing.
“Prioritization of securing building envelopes and restoring interior learning environments and guaranteeing student safety has been paramount and has been assigned to completion,” Dent-McNair said.
There should be full completion by the end of 2023 with the exception of Hector A. Cafferata and some roof repairs, she said, adding the district has been proactively implementing additional processes to piggyback contracts to help mitigate foreseeable issues to keep them on track of completing projects.
The presentation broke down the closed project percentages, in progress and open projects within seven categories — athletics and fields, electrical, exterior, HVAC, interior, portables and roof.
 

RICHMOND, Va. -- The state agency that ensures compliance with workplace safety standards has initiated an investigation into a Richmond school that's been at the center of recent mold concerns.
The Department of Labor and Industry confirmed its Virginia Occupational Safety and Health (VOSH) program opened the investigation into Boushall Middle School on October 11.
mold concerns
The Richmond School Board says full building test will be scheduled this week.

By: Tyler LaynePosted at 5:43 PM, Oct 16, 2023 and last updated 11:35 PM, Oct 16, 2023
RICHMOND, Va. -- The state agency that ensures compliance with workplace safety standards has initiated an investigation into a Richmond school that's been at the center of recent mold concerns.
The Department of Labor and Industry confirmed its Virginia Occupational Safety and Health (VOSH) program opened the investigation into Boushall Middle School on October 11.
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It's unclear what exactly is under investigation and why it was launched, but a spokesperson said it was initiated in response to a complaint.
"We are unable to comment further at this time due to the active investigation," department spokesperson Stephen Clausing said.
In recent months, some teachers and parents have complained about the air quality conditions at Boushall.
Teachers said they returned to the building after the summer break to find mold covering desks, chairs, ceilings, and equipment. They claimed the conditions were causing health issues.
 

Melissa Pacheco remembers multiple days when her daughter and nephews came home from school with headaches from overheating. One day, her nephew vomited as a result, she said.

She blamed the lack of central air at Academia de Lenguaje y Bellas Artes, a South Side Milwaukee public school that teaches bilingually from preschool to eighth grade. 

Pacheco tried to organize other parents to push for investments in air conditioning, but school leaders prioritized recreational equipment instead, she said. She elevated her heat concerns to the Milwaukee Public Schools board as it planned for students to return to in-person learning earlier in the COVID-19 pandemic.

After that didn’t work, Pacheco during the 2021-2022 school year pulled her seventh-grade daughter from the school she attended since kindergarten.

“I was like, ‘I’m so done with them. Nothing gets done,’” the 41-year-old mother said.

Academia de Lenguaje y Bellas Artes is among about half of public schools in Milwaukee — and thousands nationally — that lack full or partial indoor air conditioning, according to district officials. That shortcoming has caused school closures and left students struggling to concentrate when temperatures rise. 

States for years have required schools to test for lead in drinking water, even as administrators say the undertaking can be expensive, time-consuming, and stressful.
Now, Michigan is poised to lead the nation in adopting a new approach that experts believe will help schools address lead in water more quickly, effectively, and cheaply.
Both chambers of the Michigan legislature have passed “Filter First” bills that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is expected to sign into law this week after allocating funding for the program two years ago. The new laws will require schools and child care facilities to identify water fountains and sinks that are most heavily used, proactively install lead-eliminating filters at those locations, and then conduct tests to ensure the filters are working correctly.
This approach represents a major shift from most existing state laws regarding lead in school drinking water, which can be toxic and cause cancer and developmental challenges in children.
The federal government doesn’t require schools to test for lead, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency only requires that public water systems take action to address lead contamination when they find lead levels of 15 parts per billion or more.
But the American Academy of Pediatrics asserts that no level of lead in drinking water is safe to consume, particularly for children. And many states have set lower levels of lead at which they require action to remove the chemical element.
The focus on drinking water in schools is part of a larger nationwide effort to replace lead pipes, with help from the federal government. High-profile contamination in places like Flint, Mich., and Jackson, Miss., have drawn national attention to the problem in recent years.
 

Two Pioneer Valley lawmakers are seeking a more concrete plan — including the creation of a “watchdog group” — to improve the health of public school buildings and reduce their environmental impact.

Sen. Jo Comerford, D-Northampton, and Rep. Mindy Domb, D-Amherst, were able to incorporate several pieces of their proposal for healthy and green public schools as part of a major bill focused on clean energy and offshore wind. That bill passed last year as part of the Legislature’s 2021-2022 session.

Their goal was to collect data on the health of school buildings, including their energy and resource efficiency, to limit exposure to toxic chemicals and create an environment that is “conducive to learning,” according to the original bill.

“It was really an exciting and pretty sweeping bill,” Comerford said of the measure, which “urged the collection of real data” on the conditions of school buildings and their infrastructure.

NICHOLAS COUNTY, W.Va. (WCHS) — The Nicholas County Board of Education approved three school closures Monday night.
The decision comes as the school system is preparing to build a brand new pre-k through eighth grade building at Glade Creek.
The board approved the closing of Glade Creek Elementary School, Summersville Elementary School and Summersville Middle School in order to form the new school.
"We're one step closer to getting one step closer," Nicholas County Schools Superintendent Terrence Beam said.
After years of setbacks and delays, Nicholas County is inching closer to breaking ground at the Glade Creek property.
On Oct. 12, the BOE approved a plan for a single building that will house pre-k through eighth grade students but will have separate entrances, cafeterias and administrations.
"It will be two schools in one building, but it does save us the money we need to do the other things that our other schools need," Beam told Eyewitness News.
Monday's decision to close three schools was needed to update the Nicholas County School's Consolidated Educational Facilities Plan. The plan is something schools have to develop every 10 years.
"When this situation came up we had to change our CEFP," Beam said. "Some of the things we're going to do are not listed high enough on our rankings our priority rankings for the CEFP. So, you have to adjust that."
 

Faced with a worker shortage, Vail Unified School District will pay signing, attendance and retention bonuses to groundskeepers and maintenance technicians.
The district board voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the incentive program after being told 63% of Vail’s groundskeeper positions are unfilled and 27% of its maintenance technician slots are vacant, while there are “1,230 open work orders that need to be completed at school sites across the district.”
“Due to the number of outstanding work orders, there are times when maintenance staff members are working on repairs in specific areas such as electrical, plumbing, etc., without the needed background,” the board was told.
The shortages persist even though Vail recently raised hourly starting pay for the workers, administrators told the board.
New hires in those categories will receive $200 when they complete training, $200 after 90 days of work and completing 50 work orders, and $200 after 180 days of employment and completing 100 work orders.
 

Holes in walls. Leaky plumbing. Aging systems. Outdated educational facilities.
These are just a few of the issues supporters say plague the nearly 50-year-old Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School, a facility tasked with training students in modern, high-tech vocational education.
Not only is the school district’s original building outdated for educational purposes, the facility and its systems are well beyond their life expectancy and need $165 million-plus in repairs, school officials say.
Voters in the 11 school district communities, including North Attleboro, Plainville, Wrentham, Norfolk, Seekonk and Franklin, will vote on a planned new $286 million school at a special election Oct. 24.
If approved, taxpayers in the district towns could face a tax increase over a number of years.
The school has significant deficiencies in lab classrooms and other areas, including those for the nursing program, the cafeteria, auditorium and gym.
There are structural and mechanical and code compliance issues as well.
Among the school’s many shortcomings are that the main entrance lacks appropriate security, the electrical system sorely needs updating, it lacks fire suppression systems, there are handicapped accessibility issues, and asbestos.
 

Nearly a year after voters rejected a $17 million upgrade to sports facilities at Southington High School, the state has committed partial funding for athletic field reconstruction, allocating $500,000 that will be matched by $206,663 in town funds.

Cheshire, meanwhile, received $500,000 to construct an outdoor “splash pad” on the west side of the Cheshire Community Pool, as well as upgrading a similar feature within the facility. The town is expected to contribute $364,303 for design and construction work.

The state money comes in the form of Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grants, and is specifically designated for “infrastructure improvements, such as road safety reconstruction projects, sewer and drainage upgrades, sidewalk and pedestrian safety enhancements, recreational facility upgrades, and other kinds of capital improvement projects,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a Sept. 29 statement announcing the funding.

In total, the state will provide $24.5 million in STEAP grant funding for 60 communities.