How Should District 46 Handle Late-Summer Heat at Meadowview, Woodview?

When the temperatures reached the upper 80s/low 90s the last week of August, Community Consolidated School District 46 officials were forced to close both Meadowview and Woodview Schools one day due to the heat.

The schools also had half-day schedules Aug. 28-30. In a statement on the district's website, officials said temperatures in classrooms on Aug. 27 reached 80-89 degrees. The next morning, the average temperature was about 80 degrees in the classrooms before students arrived, and that average temperature rose another three degrees in the afternoon after students had left for the day.

At the District 46 school board's Sept. 4 meeting, Superintendent Ellen Correll and Operations and Maintenance Coordinator Keith Grinnell offered the board an update on what could be done in the future to deal with the late summer temperatures at Woodview and Meadowview.

"We all know it's difficult to learn, whether it's too warm or too cold," said Correll. 

Neither Meadowview nor Woodview have air conditioning. Installing an air conditioning system in the schools could cost $1.5 million, Correll said. She said the board could consider forgoing some of the already-scheduled summer maintenance projects and instead use those funds to install air conditioning at Woodview and Meadowview.

Grinnell said one of those planned—and costly—projects is the roof replacement at Grayslake Middle School, which is expected to cost about $900,000. The parking lots also need seal coating, Grinnell said, and some of the school buildings need new carpet. 

Grinnell also mentioned the possibility of using portable air conditioning units.

What do you think the district should do at Meadowview and Woodview? Share your thoughts in the comment section.