With temperatures on Wednesday expected to be in the 90s with the heat index up to 105 degrees, Wellesley students will be feeling the heat on the first day of school. The National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning with unhealthy air quality that is in effect through 9pm Wednesday evening.
The Hardy Elementary School PTO has gotten out ahead of the situation and put out the call for help keeping students and staff cool during the heat wave, which is expected to keep up through Thursday. The group posted on its Facebook page, “We’ve checked in with the office and want to pass on a request: if anyone can loan a fan (box or oscillating) and/or an outdoor sprinkler, please reply…”
The coolest kids in town
In case you’re wondering which students in town will stay the coolest, that would be those who attend Wellesley High School. The school, new in 2012, boasts a pretty involved high-efficiency chilled water plant, along with a geothermal system to keep the building cool. Next up would be Sprague School, which extensively upgraded its mechanical systems in 2002 and has an air conditioning system to keep the building cool.
Wellesley Middle School’s common spaces have central air handling units, and its administrative areas are served by a small air-cooled chiller. PAWs pre-school has it pretty good too, with a central AC unit that serves the nationally accredited early childhood program.
The hottest kids in town
As for the other six schools, all elementary, beating the heat is achieved largely through a cobbled-together system of a few fans here and there and a window AC unit or two in the administrative offices — unless your child has been lucky enough to score a modular classroom. If that’s the case, they’ll revel in refreshing coolness all day long. That’s right, all the modulars have AC. So if you were fretting that the modular unit your student was assigned to was somehow not really part of the school, stop that line of thinking right now. The exterior of those designed-to-be-temporary spaces may be ugly as sin, but like mom always says, it’s the inside that counts. During those hot days at the beginning and tail end of the school year, they’re as cool as the other side of the pillow, and that’s a beautiful thing.
Everyone else, carry on as best you can, cooler weather is in the forecast after Labor Day. Which is when school should start, anyway.
According to the email we got from the WMS principal, the middle school is not air conditioned. Perhaps the common areas you mention means just the cafeteria, but not classrooms. Does anyone know when the district is planning to add AC? Seems this town can afford it. And the elementary schools too of course.
Yes, I’ve heard the classrooms aren’t air conditioned. As far as when AC will be added, perhaps bit by bit as old buildings get renovated.
I have to imagine that AC is not a top priority for facilities considering that traditionally the schools aren’t occupied for the majority of the time when AC would be necessary. Gradual rollout might provide more flexibility for summer programs, though (note that ESY is always at Sprague).