When is hot too hot?
This topic was brought up by my own very red-faced teenager upon arriving home from school earlier this week. She wanted to know what I could do if I was a trustee about the fact that she had to spend the day in a classroom that was 34 degrees. Her head was aching and she was nauseous.
My Response
For the past two years, at least, we have had very warm weather during the months of June and September. It seems our summers are stretching into both ends of the school year. According to an article in the Ottawa Citizen, September 5th, the OCDSB reviewed its air conditioning status in the spring of 2018. They reported that “more than a third — 51 of the board’s 150 schools — have no air conditioning at all. Six have A/C in only one room and 32 have only small sections air-conditioned. Another 23 schools, or 15 per cent, have “large areas” that are air-conditioned, and 38 schools, or 25 per cent of the total, are fully air-conditioned.”
We are expecting our children to learn in these schools. We are expecting our teachers and staff to work in these schools. This is clearly something that needs to be addressed. Standards need to be established with regard to health and safety – how hot is too hot? And, a well-thought out plan needs to be devised that will address this issue over the coming years.
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