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Article by Paula Gomes, Tennessee Conservative News –
School districts across the state are struggling with aging heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems despite having earmarked COVID-19 relief funds for upgrades.
Part of the approximately $4.2 billion in statewide Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) allocations were meant to replace aging HVAC systems, in turn improving air quality inside Tennessee schools.
However, in the past fortnight, with temperatures soaring so high that schools have been unable to comply with a new recess law, some districts have experienced failures in keeping classrooms cool.
With a heat index well over 100 degrees and high humidity as the 2026-2027 school year began, Greenbrier Middle School had to install portable AC units in some classrooms as temperatures reached 105 degrees Fahrenheit.
Robertson County Schools leadership urged parents to send their children to school with water and fans as 8 to 10 classrooms repeatedly lost air conditioning. According to parents and community members, this is the second year in a row that the school has grappled with controlling the temperature in order to keep students comfortable as they learn.
Schools within the district will not be getting a new cooling system until school starts again next August.
The Robertson County Board of Education is working on approving a bid for a new cooling unit, and has acknowledged recently that AC issues have been a problem for some time.
At Kingsbury Elementary in Memphis, staff were forced to move students to cooler areas with functioning AC as temperatures rose into the upper 90s.
In East Knoxville, Sarah Moore Greene Magnet Academy experienced a partial air conditioning outage on the very first day. The problem was resolved within two hours after Knox County Schools maintenance staff and Trane technicians were able to troubleshoot and repair the system. A Knox County Schools spokesperson pointed to recent storm activity as the cause of the issue.
Morgan County Schools also had multiple cooling unit failures reported. While maintenance teams worked on resolving the issues, backorders on replacement parts can prolong repairs.
When the recent high temperatures forced schools to pivot to indoor recess times, JC Bowman, executive director and CEO of Professional Educators of Tennessee, said that this scenario was brought up to lawmakers as a concern while they debated the legislation.
It is harder to accommodate indoor recess time as space is limited and teachers must supervise.
Bowman has encouraged school districts to consider moving the start date of school until closer to Labor Day.
Sources:
JC Bowman
https://www.wate.com/news/education-schools/sarah-moore-greene-hvac-issues
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Just close schools till cooler weather.