ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 21, 1996 TAG: 9605210067
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-4 EDITION: METRO
SCHOOLS closing early. Some schools not opening at all. A lot of schools operating at less than full capacity.
Granted - and thankfully - the record-breaking heat our region is experiencing isn't a problem school officials face every May.
But unpleasant heat happens often enough in late spring and early fall. And the effect on children's education is comparable to what happens when schools shut down during the winter on account of snow, ice and record-breaking cold temperatures: Education is curtailed.
Like the rest of us, school officials can't do anything but talk about the weather. When winter storms render roads too treacherous for children and teachers to get to school, there's nothing to do but declare a ``snow day'' and jiggle the schedule to try to make up later for lost time.
But hot weather doesn't make roads impassable. It can bring education to a halt only if it makes classrooms insufferable - and there is a way to control that. It's called an air-conditioner's thermostat.
Unfortunately, not every school in this region has air conditioning. All of Salem's schools are so blessed. All in Botetourt County are, except a portion of Lord Botetourt High School. Most are in Bedford and Roanoke counties, with some notable exceptions. But in some school divisions - Roanoke city's, for example - fully air-conditioned schools are more the exception than the rule. Some facilities can claim no more than a few inefficient window units.
To their credit, most school officials have pushed hard for elected officials to provide the funds, from general tax revenues or bond issues, to air-condition schools. It's not an inexpensive proposition, especially in older schools where extensive electrical rewiring is necessary to make this possible. Depending on the size of the facility, $1 million per school is typical.
But just as air conditioning is no longer viewed by businesses as a luxury, neither is it an educational frill. The discomfort may contribute to disciplinary problems. Stifling indoor air can be a health hazard for those with asthma or allergies. Respiratory viruses can travel through a class full of children faster than head lice. But, most crucially, sweltering classrooms aren't conducive to learning.
Those who hold the purse strings for capital improvements need to recognize, as well, that AC-less schools hamper progress toward an important reform: year-round education.
It comes down to priorities. Most voters, certainly most parents, would be irate if elected officials allowed businesses to have children laboring in sweat shops. They should be no less tolerant of elected officials who are moving too sluggishly to air-condition sweat-shop schools.
LENGTH: Medium: 52 linesby CNB