Schools

South Orange - Maplewood Students Report High School is Cold

Some rooms at Columbia High School have little or no heat, say students

Jackets are not normally worn indoors at Columbia High School, but this week is different. Students report that classrooms are "freezing" and without heat. Some students have found their classes moved away from especially cold rooms, and have taken to social media to report classroom temperatures in the teens. (These temperatures are unverified.)

Concerned parents, regardless of the exact temperature, worry.

One parent wrote that she is "currently worrying that, in the middle of flu season, [her] kids are being exposed to unreasonably cold temperatures at CHS."

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Suzanne Turner, speaking for the district, noted, "With the bitterly cold temperatures this week, a few heating issues have arisen at CHS.  Our property services department has been working diligently to resolve issues as they arise, and administrators are traveling the building constantly to identify concerns and make alternate arrangements when necessary.  No classes are being dismissed early, however some classes are being relocated to warmer locations in the building until appropriate temperatures are restored in their usual classrooms."

Temperatures are expected to reach the 50s next week.

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