SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Students at Rancho Bernardo High and neighboring Bernardo Heights Middle School will have early dismissal schedules through at least next Wednesday due to a broken air conditioner. Students told ABC 10News that afternoon temperatures inside classrooms hit 87 degrees.
“It’s cooler outside because of the breeze. It’s like an oven in the classroom," said student Gena Mandhra.
Poway Unified School District spokesperson Christine Paik says they attempted to repair the more than 30-year-old HVAC system, but still have not been able to get it to work. They are trying to procure as many portable A/C systems and they can find and are installing a new chiller late next week. However, until those short-term solutions are installed, the district felt it best to release students early, before the afternoon heat makes learning difficult. “I’m not saying that this is going to be easy to deal with for families, our working families, but when it comes to health and safety conditions, we heard back from a lot of students and teachers that the situation in the classrooms late in the afternoon when the air conditioners aren’t working was not ideal," Paik said.
Parents expressed frustration at having to figure out how to leave work to pick up their children, while others said the district should have replaced the air conditioning before it broke down. "It’s been an ongoing issue for years and it hasn’t been resolved, which makes you wonder why hasn’t it been resolved. It should be a priority," said paret Sukhwant Mandhra.
Replacing the HVAC system at the schools has been on PUSD's priority project list for several years, but the Paik says funding has not been available. In 2020, the district backed a proposed bond measure that would have raised millions of dollars for renovations district-wide, including Rancho Bernardo High's air conditioning. However, voters rejected the measure.
Paik says that has forced the district to make difficult decisions on how to prioritize projects with the limited funding available. One example is a recent $14 million renovation at Rancho Bernardo High that removed mold conditions that Paik called dangerous. “That was really more important at the time to staff here in terms of their health and well-being.”
Early dismissal at Bernardo Heights Middle School will be at noon, while Rancho Bernardo High will dismiss students at 1:15.
