By Lisa Rutledge, Cambridge Times
Apr 23, 2009
here’s finally a light at the end of the tunnel for kids sweating it out in hot portables. And there will be a cool breeze, too.
After six years of debate whether to install air conditioners in portables, the Waterloo Region District School Board is committing $1.2 million over five years to install air conditioners in 226 portables. There are 303 in total and 77 are already equipped with the cooling devices. The decision was made during Monday night’s school board meeting.
Cambridge trustee Cindy Watson has championed the cause for years and was growing frustrated with makeshift solutions, like moving portables to shadier spots and using night cooling methods. She said she was armed with arguments for Monday night’s meeting, ready to defend the bid yet again.
And then the district’s acting facilities controller Ian Gaudet recommended moving forward and faster to ensure students and teachers are comfortable.
“I just couldn’t believe it,” she said. “It’s taken six years, but it was well worth it.”
She recalls the many delegations, calls and letters from parents and teachers complaining about the effects of spending days in overheated and humid portables. Many have reported suffering headaches, fatigue and nausea, and in some cases, fainting from heat exhaustion.
“Some of the stories are just heartbreaking,” said Watson.
There were also complaints that loudly buzzing fans caused children to be distracted and sleepy, and made it hard to hear the teacher. On the hottest days, many schools gave teachers authority to leave their portables and find relief from the heat in school libraries, hallways or available classrooms.
There’s no other choice but to commit to air conditioning portables, maintains Watson, because they’re a fact of life in school districts.
“It’s something we have to live with.”
Parent Karolyn Moore, who made a presentation to trustees Monday to persuade the board to install air conditioners, was ecstatic to hear the verdict. And even though Saginaw Public School –where her daughter attends Grade 4 –won’t see them installed right away, she’s happy the plan is moving forward.
“Just knowing that it’s coming and students are going to get some relief, it’s worth it,” she said. “It’s long overdue.”
Moore was inspired to join the school’s parent council to help lobby to make portables better environments for students and teachers. She shared some of her school’s experiences with trustees. She said during the worst days, daily lessons were overshadowed by trying to find ways to keep cool.
“The focus of the day was to escape the heat,” she commented, noting that kids sometimes brought water spray bottles to cool themselves. “I just didn’t feel it was an environment that was conducive to learning.”
The board’s original five-year plan to install air conditions was revised after trustees suggested that younger students needed to be a higher priority.
