V.I. Dept. of Education Commissioner Dionne Wells-Hedrington on Saturday made a public appeal for support following a recent spree of theft and vandalism impacting the department's ongoing projects. The criminal acts, described as "senseless, brazen, and unfortunate," have significantly disrupted preparations for the 2023-2024 school year, the commissioner said.
Over the past few days, Education officials have reported multiple incidents, which included destruction of air conditioning units stored in the department's procurement warehouse on St. Thomas for their copper coil cores. Meanwhile, at the Charlotte Amalie High School demolition site, also on St. Thomas, windows and other construction equipment meant for the site have gone missing.
"These thefts and acts of vandalism are not merely destructive, they strike at the heart of our efforts to equip schools with the resources they need to prepare for the upcoming school year," said Wells-Hedrington.
 

Dozens of Vermont school districts have sued chemical giant Monsanto over toxic contamination in educational buildings from now-banned industrial chemicals known as PCBs.

Last year, Vermont became the first state in the country to require older schools to test their indoor air for polychlorinated biphenyls, which were used in building materials and electrical equipment before 1980.

More than 90 school districts filed the complaint on Friday in federal court. They’re seeking to recover costs and damages because, under Vermont’s law, schools with high-enough contamination levels must reduce exposure. Removing the PCBs will be expensive, and certain districts may have to demolish buildings and replace them with new ones — which in total could cost them “hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars,” the lawsuit says.

The PCBs are present in the school buildings from caulking and glazing compounds, sealants, adhesives, and other construction materials.

Monsanto said the case has no merit and that “third party companies, not Monsanto” produced the PCB-laden materials likely used at the schools.

“Monsanto never manufactured, used or disposed of PCBs in Vermont and has not manufactured these products for more than 45 years,” the company said in a statement late Monday. Monsanto is now owned by Bayer, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology company.

The first construction work on schools damaged during the war started in Ukraine. The schools are being rebuilt within the framework of the project, financed by the EU and fulfilled by the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS).

Source: European Pravda, referring to official pages of the institutions

Details: The first stage of the project will focus on eight educational facilities in Kyiv, Chernihiv and Kharkiv oblasts, where nearly 20,000 schoolchildren are studying. Among them is Lyceum No. 4 in the settlement of Lozova in Kharkiv Oblast.

These schools have been damaged only slightly and do not need capital refurbishment;  broken doors and windows, as well as damaged equipment, need to be replaced. Basements that will serve as bomb shelters will also undergo repairs.

It is planned to complete the repairs by the beginning of the new school year.

After these educational facilities, 28 more schools will undergo more capital refurbishment, including repairing damaged walls and ceilings, heating systems, and improving shelters in basements.

Gov. Green signed four bills at the ceremony, adding to seven education bills detailed below.

“We need 1,200 teachers to fill our annual teacher shortage,” Gov. Green said. “Construction of teacher housing is seen as a key step in the future of education of HawaiÊ»i’s keiki. Affordable housing will aid in recruitment and retention of teachers, and that will help to address the shortage. SB941 (Act 172) authorizes the School Facilities Authority to partner with public and private agencies to develop housing on- or off-campus for teachers, other educators and staff, and to develop classrooms.”

HB960 (Act 175) places prekindergarten facilities within the authority of the DOE School Facilities Authority and transfers $200 million in general funds to the School Facilities Special fund for FY 2023-24. The funds will expand access to Pre-K to eligible children.

HB503 (Act 174) acknowledges the importance of computer science in an increasingly technology-driven world, by requiring the Board of Education to determine whether making computer science a graduation requirement would be in the best interests of public school students and the public; and if so, to work with the Department of Education to analyze a timeline and process for making computer science a graduation requirement by no later than the 2030-2031 school year.

SB1344 (Act 173) amends to ‘school health assistants,’ the former term ‘school health aides,’ to better reflect changes to the job title. The new law allows administration of medication to public school students by school health assistants, with the approval of a health care professional within the Department of Education, Department of Health, or a health care service pursuant to a written agreement with the Department of Education.

A new grant program from the U.S. Department of Energy is poised to send $178 million to American schools for energy efficiency and student health projects. One of the funding recipients is a coalition of 20 Illinois school districts, led by a western Illinois district with just 300 students.

Williamsfield Schools Superintendent Tim Farquer says the long path to the Renew America's Schools grant started three years ago with just eight school districts. Those schools formed the “Bus to Grid” initiative.

“Just to try and help each other get funding for electric buses, in particular,” said Farquer. “But in a way that supports the expansion of renewable energy.”

Over the years, Farquer and the coalition applied for a list of funding opportunities to purchase electric buses and build charging infrastructure for schools around the state. Farquer says it's important to invest in preparing for a switch to electric, not just for environmental reasons, but also for the health of students who ride diesel buses every day.

“The numbers support the fact that we have more respiratory issues with kids and adults than we have in years past,” he said. “And emissions from diesel engines just have a tendency to agitate that.”

Groves of trees and rows of garden beds made from mismatched pieces of wood line the landscape of Spring Harbor Middle School, labeled with handwritten signs that poke out of the dirt.
Chickens roam among the beds of strawberries, kale and tomatoes, pecking at the ground.
A greenhouse built into the hillside stands in the background, its bright yellow siding now slightly faded by the sun. Inside, herbs grow out of repurposed plastic bottles, and a brew of “compost tea” is ready to be spread over plants in the garden.
In between the plants, chickens and compost bins, middle school students dot the landscape.
One group sits in the shade of a mulberry tree, occasionally standing up to pluck a few ripe berries from the branches and eat them. Others gravitate toward the chicken coop, taking turns holding hens named Bowser, Yoshi, Snowball Joe and Thelma.
This rural patch on the West Side is one of more than 35 school gardens around the Madison School District, including ones at Lapham, Midvale and Crestwood Elementary schools, Badger Rock Middle School and East and West high schools.
 

An updated school facility priority list released earlier this month came under fire as state officials raised questions at a committee meeting in Gillette last week.

By the end of the hours-long discussion, legislators walked away with “a lot to consider,” said Sen. Bill Landon, R-Casper.

In theory, the new list scores the capacity and condition needs for school district facilities across the state, prioritizing the buildings by which ones are in need of the most help, whether they’re over capacity or in need of serious repair. The list differs from past years when a consolidated schedule was used to prioritize projects that also used capacity and condition data.

Changes are due in part to emergency rules that came about when the Legislature eliminated the consolidation schedule in the 2023 session. But the change in data collection and the use of a new firm has legislators and school officials questioning the validity of the updated list that dropped projects the state’s Select Committee on School Facilities has had on its radar for decades, or conversely, placed some schools that recently had major repairs near the top.

HOLUALOA — Holualoa Elementary students and staff will be starting the new school year with refreshed learning spaces following extensive renovation work over the summer break to address campuswide environmental concerns. 

“It's been a complete transformation. We've seen everything from the wall colors change to new flooring, for a whole new atmosphere and environment that our students and our teachers are very fortunate to come back to in this coming school year,” said Principal Kristin Muramoto. “Elementary school is really the foundation for success, and I think the classrooms create a safe and healthy environment where students can learn.”

The HawaiÊ»i State Teachers Association helped bring attention to some of the environmental concerns and challenges facing the school. The renovations were designed to reduce interior environmental conditions conducive to mold growth in Holualoa’s damp and humid climate zone, situated at an elevation of approximately 1,400 feet above sea level. Classroom renovations began in October 2022 with the majority of work completed during the spring and summer breaks when rooms were not in use to minimize impacts on student learning. A total of 16 classrooms have been overhauled with new tile flooring, interior paint, dehumidifiers, and other improvements.

“We’ve repainted the classrooms with mold-inhibiting paints and removed old floor carpeting to promote better air quality,” said Randall Tanaka, assistant superintendent for HIDOE’s Office of Facilities and Operations. “Open windows and fans will help air circulation during the day and dehumidifiers will help to reduce moisture in the air overnight, which will create an environment well-suited for students to learn.”

In addition, 10 other office and work spaces were renovated, covered walkways were power washed and new furniture was installed in several classrooms at an approximate cost of $1.27 million to date. Throughout the renovations, school leaders have kept the school community informed with progress reports. 

The San Antonio Independent School District has published its first draft of a framework that could determine how the district reorganizes or closes schools.

Board trustees voted last month to move forward with a study of school building capacity amid an ongoing decline in student enrollment for more than two decades. The district says this has left schools under-enrolled or with small student bodies.

“In the past, we have resisted closing schools as our enrollment declined,” SAISD Superintendent Jaime Aquino said in a statement. “As a result, our schools have gotten emptier. We invested in innovation and it worked, but we have not recovered enough students to reverse the trend. At this time, our resources are spread thin, and this leads to our students and their families experiencing inequities.”

The district describes this process as "rightsizing." It may involve closing school buildings, co-locating schools to the same campus, or consolidating schools into one. Recommendations from the study would take effect starting the 2024-2025 school year.

The framework will be used to generate a list of schools considered for closing or consolidation, and schools that will receive the students affected. It includes three primary criteria to determine whether buildings are being underused, including facility usage, enrollment, and the facility cost per pupil.

PHOENIX — The state is making school safety a priority.

Gov. Katie Hobbs signed a pair of executive orders Thursday that will focus on better securing buildings and updating guidelines throughout the state.

Improving School Facilities Inspections
The first of the two executive orders will reinstitute the inspection of education facilities throughout the state.

According to Executive Order 2023-14, prior to budget cuts following the Great Recession, the state conducted regular inspections of school facilities.  The purpose of said inspections found that recommendations to districts that fell below minimum guidelines, if addressed in a reasonable amount of time, could prevent the development of serious problems.

The order also indicates the move is in response to pending litigation against the state.

After the impact and destruction of Typhoon Mawar, concerns are raised over the opening of the schools.
The Department of Education has had multiple schools be cited for health violations while some others are dealing with needing facility repairs.
As chairperson of the committee on education, public safety and the arts, Sen. Chris Barnett called an oversight hearing at the Guam Congress Building on Thursday afternoon, June 29 to look over the Guam Department of Education’s compliance status with Public Law 37-4.
At the hearing, Dr. Judith Won Pat, the Acting Superintendent of Education provided a synopsis of the status of the district’s schools, which could be evaluated as no schools are shelters anymore.
Public Health inspections
Simon Sanchez High School was vastly affected by the typhoon, and they had 66 demerits in their last inspection, which is typically grounds for closure. Thus, the current SSHS campus will currently not have students return there until the new campus is built or health measures are safely addressed, according to Won Pat.
 

GREENWICH — Smoke from Canadian wildfires remains a threat to local air quality — one reason why upgrading the Greenwich schools' old windows and other indoor environmental systems will take priority during the summer, officials say.
The lesson was brought home after some of the district's schools fared badly when the clinging yellow smoke from the fires blanketed much of Connecticut and seeped into classrooms on June 7. The district considered an early dismissal that day and delaying the start of school the next day in case the air remained hard to breathe.
“Today, we found that buildings with decade-old windows allowed more infiltration of a smoky odor,” Superintendent Toni Jones wrote in a statement to Greenwich Public Schools families on June 7. “Windows were kept shut, and air conditioning systems were closely monitored to ensure a healthy environment. ... We were fortunate that on the heaviest day, the smoky conditions did not get really heavy until late afternoon.”  
 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Biden-Harris Administration, through the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), today announced the first round of selectees for the Renew America’s Schools grant program, a competitive award that will support the implementation of energy improvements in K–12 schools across the country. There are 24 Local Education Agencies (LEAs) in 22 states that will share in approximately $178 million of funding, enabling them to pursue diverse projects to lower energy costs, lower emissions, and create healthier, safer, and more supportive learning environments in their schools. This historic investment will directly benefit about 74,000 students and 5,000 teachers in 97 school buildings across America. DOE’s focus on public schools, which make up the second-largest sector of American infrastructure after transportation, supports President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda by promoting STEM education and workforce development, while creating well-paying jobs that stimulate local economies. The announcement comes on the heels on President Biden delivering a major economic address on “Bidenomics” – his vision for growing the economy from the middle-out and bottom-up, including by investing in American infrastructure. 

A building collapse at an English school resulting in death or injury is “very likely” following years of national underfunding, a public spending watchdog warned in a damning report published on Wednesday.

Around 700,000 children in England are attending schools in need of major repairs, as “years of underinvestment” by the government have led to an overall decline in the condition of buildings, said the National Audit Office (NAO).

It added that despite the “critical” risks posed to the safety of pupils and staff, the government lacks enough information about the nation’s stock of school buildings to manage the issue.

NAO head Gareth Davies said that, despite assessing the possibility of building collapse or failure causing death or injury as “critical and very likely” in 2021, “the Department for Education has not been able to reduce this risk”.

A number of buildings have collapsed at London schools in recent years.

In 2021, 12 children and one adult were taken to hospital after a ceiling collapsed in a Year 3 classroom at Rosemead Preparatory School in Dulwich. A further 16 people were treated at the scene by paramedics.

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — The Rockford Public School Board has approved a plan to install multiple solar panel farms at more than a dozen schools throughout the city, in an effort to reduce its operating costs.

RPS Chief Operations Officer Michael Phillips says the project began with the school district’s desire to purchase low-cost energy that is generated on-site, but now the community itself will be able to take advantage of the same opportunity.

“It’s a great opportunity for us, to find some additional ways to generate power in a sustainable manner,” Phillips said.

Last night, the board approved a five-year lease option with Forefront Energy to install 13 solar farms at schools, and a 14th in a field near Lathrop Elementary School for community use. The project will consist of 9 rooftop installations and 5 ground-mount locations.

“This is power that’s generated and going directly to the ComEd grid, and then we will purchase the renewable energy credits. The community will also have an opportunity, and neighbors, to purchase these same renewable energy credits,” Phillips said.

The small Steelton-Highspire School District, a few miles south of Harrisburg along the Susquehanna River, consists of just three buildings — an elementary school, a high school and an administrative office.

They sit on just over 50 acres and serve some 1,400 students, according to superintendent Mick Iskric. They’re unassuming, and at first glance, obfuscate a large structure from view: Tucked behind one building, between the elementary students’ playground and the high school students’ football field, sit a few dozen rows of solar panels that, for a little more than a year, have generated enough power to meet all of this modest district’s energy needs.

Iskric has a laundry list of projects in view for Steelton-Highspire — many of which, including the solar array, are born out of necessity. A low-income district, it’s been operating at an annual deficit for 14 years, he says. It’s located in a legacy steel town, where the crash of the industry and the 2008 recession both depressed the property tax base, leaving its schools without sufficient funds for educational programming, teacher salaries and much-needed infrastructure upgrades.

So, the district sought out new revenue sources — and, in 2019, turned to solar energy. It crafted a purchase-power agreement with a local solar developer, located acreage on top of an old landfill, and installed enough solar panels to generate 1.7 megawatts of electricity — “roughly 3,500 panels,” Iskric says. That’s enough power for both schools and then some — the district will save an estimated $1.6 million over the course of its 20-year agreement with the developer, at variable rates per month depending on the surplus energy the panels generate and feed back to the grid, he says.

LEXINGTON, KY — At a pivotal school board meeting on Monday, FCPS School Board members reached a consensus regarding the implementation of a crucial phase in their District Facility Plan. A $244 million investment in education was discussed, with particular attention given to the construction of a new building for Henry Clay High School, a facility for the Rise STEM Academy for Girls, and an elementary school in the Masterson Station area, the Herald-Leader’s Valarie Honeycutt Spears reports.

The proposal was showcased as a historic step towards enhancing the educational opportunities for students and families within the district. Board member Tyler Murphy shared the news through a Facebook post, lauding the community’s dedication to investing in public schools.

“During tonight’s Board meeting, the board discussed the latest proposals for proceeding with school projects listed in the District Facility Plan — presenting the board with a phased construction and renovation timeline,” Murphy posted. “This proposal represents a key phase in our ongoing and historic work to expand opportunities and access for our students and our families, made possible by a community committed to meaningful investments in our public schools.”

This decision comes in light of the pressing need to address the deteriorating conditions at Henry Clay High School, which has been beleaguered with environmental complaints. The school, which shifted to its present Fontaine Road facility in 1970, has not undergone significant renovation since 2006. Reports of vermin, including a snake and mouse falling from the ceilings, have raised safety concerns among parents and students. Documents revealed that the school was also plagued with additional infestation issues involving ants, flying birds, and a raccoon.

After years of controversy in Holyoke, Massachusetts, construction of a new middle school is expected to start later this year.

The recent decision by the Massachusetts School Building Authority to reimburse Holyoke for over half the estimated $85.5 million price tag to build a new middle school means the final steps can now be taken locally to bring the project to reality.

“This means that it is time for Holyoke,” said Mayor Joshua Garcia, who thanked the directors of the authority and said the city’s financial team and the City Council worked together to agree on a plan for paying for the city’s share of the project.

“It’s been a long time coming. I want to say ten years or so that this community has been trying to understand the best path forward to meet the needs of our middle school-aged population,” he said.

In 2019, the city’s voters rejected a property tax increase to pay to build two new middle schools. Officials then began pursuing alternatives and settled on a plan for a single new school building.

The city will not have to go back to the voters because its $40 million share of the project can be covered through long-term borrowing, said City Treasurer Rory Casey.

After more than five decades, the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation will be getting a new school.

On Tuesday, June 13, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a bill that makes an appropriation of $64.5 million to the Elko County School District to replace the Owyhee Combined School.

In a ceremonial signing in Carson City, Lombardo spoke of the significance of the funding for members of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation.

“This opened the eyes to the rest of the government that the people in Owyhee, even though you may have never heard of the city, or the town or the tribe, they’re as important as everybody else,” Lombardo said.

Owyhee Combined School is located near the Nevada-Idaho border and serves around 300 students.

The decades-old building has deteriorated due to a lack of attention from the school district and its remote location. A boiler room, proximity to State Route 225 and bats living on the roof are all issues that school officials said are dangerous for students.

Tribal Chairman Brian Mason was fundamental in advocating for the legislation.

“With so many things challenging them on the reservation, everything is stacked against them, this is going to help. They'll have a reason to get up and go to school and succeed. Because it’ll be an adequate school and will have adequate teachers. It's just a big win,” Mason said.

LITTLE ROCK -- The Little Rock School Board on Thursday approved the expenditure of more than $80 million in construction costs, including $60 million for the construction of a three-story science building and a two-story field house at Central High.

The board approved a guaranteed maximum price of $60,627,694 for the additions on the south side of the historic campus, plus $10.96 million for the full renovation of Rockefeller Early Childhood Center and $10.5 million to do early site work for the building of a new west Little Rock high school on Ranch Boulevard adjacent to Pinnacle View Middle School.

The construction plans and costs were presented at a meeting in which the capital city's nine-member school board also:

Approved a $6.4 million expenditure for an online tutoring program in reading for some 2,500 elementary school pupils

Supported proposals to contract with Imagine Learning of Scottsdale, Ariz., to provide instruction for a virtual academy for sixth-through-12th graders

Voted to contract with the Power School Group of Folsom, Calif., to develop three to four interim tests to track student achievement through the school year

Authorized the sale of the now vacant David O. Dodd Elementary to what is expected to be the operator of an open-enrollment charter school

Wesley Walls, principal with the Polk Stanley Wilcox architecture firm, which has designed the Central additions, told the board that the significance of Central's history and its architecture "is not lost on us."