NYSUT President Melinda Person (left), with Jennifer Vizcaino, 4th Grade Teacher at MLK Jr. Academy School
NYSUT President Melinda Person visited three schools in Yonkers City School District today to talk to educators about how they are dealing with extreme heat in the classroom. President Person heard first-hand from educators — Kathleen Richmond at School 21, Jennifer Vizcaino at MLK Jr. School, and Jacqueline Daoud at Enrico Fermi School — and encouraged Gov. Kathy Hochul to sign the classroom heat bill passed by the Legislature into law as students and educators head back to classrooms next week.
“With a heat advisory here today and temperatures feeling close to 100 degrees, we’re encouraging Gov. Hochul to sign the classroom temperature bill into law,” said President Person. “Even animal shelters have maximum heat limits, but our classrooms do not. It’s dangerous for our students and not conducive to learning.”
“We are just a few people here today,” said teacher Jacqueline Daoud during a tour of her first-grade classroom at Enrico Fermi School. “Imagine 26 to 28 students in the classroom, my aides and then myself. So, it does get very hot in here.”
Temperatures inside Yonkers classrooms over the years have been recorded at over 100 degrees on classroom thermometers.
The school temperature bill, which passed the Legislature with overwhelming bipartisan support, requires schools to implement practical measures to manage extreme heat, but does not call for districts to make mandatory investments in costly HVAC systems or resort to school closures. If classrooms reach a temperature of 82 degrees or higher, districts must have a plan in place to cool temperatures, including turning off lights, pulling down shades, using fans and other methods. If a classroom’s temperature reaches 88 degrees, districts need to find an alternative learning location that is cooler for the safety of students and staff.
The bill is awaiting the governor’s signature.
“We had weeks of sweltering temperatures in classrooms at the beginning of last school year, and another few weeks at the end,” said President Person. “When classrooms are that hot, it is not safe for students and educators. They cannot learn and they cannot teach. We need the governor to take action to keep our classrooms safe. Our children are worth it.”
NYSUT compiled hundreds of testimonials from teachers around the state into its “Overheated” report, presented earlier this year. The union also held a demonstration at the state Capitol, setting up a portable sauna so legislators could experience the extreme temperatures students and educators face in classrooms on a regular basis.