CEA Advisor_April 2022

COMMUNICATING

SECTION HEADER APRIL 2022 CEA ADVISOR 9

that address school air quality issues and brings caseloads for school psychologists, counselors, and social workers to manageable levels so that students get the help they need,” says CEA’s DeLancey, an elementary school teacher. “For our youngest students, we also have to build in more time for play—which is not only critical to their social and emotional well-being but also a primary way they learn. Schools should be safe, healthy learning environments where parents can feel confident sending their children. They should be well-staffed with professionals who have the time to help every child succeed socially, emotionally, and academically— including administrators with considerable and relevant classroom experience.” Proposals to achieve all of those goals are now before Connecticut’s lawmakers, and they have broad bipartisan support. To get over the May 4 finish line, however, when the legislative session ends, many proposals need a push. Talk to your legislators. Share your own stories and perspectives. Ask them to bring these bills up for a vote on the House and Senate floors. Urge them to vote these bills into law. Contact your legislators at cea.org/take-action .

There’s a mental health crisis in our schools.” BLOOMFIELD DEAN OF STUDENTS ANJANEE WRIGHT SPEAKS TO THE ISSUES SHE AND OTHER EDUCATORS AND CERTIFIED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS HAVE BEEN SEEING.

• “There are times when it’s raining, and my science teacher has to put buckets under the ceiling because the roof leaks.” Danbury High School student Will Sweeney • “Sometimes I go to school and come home with a migraine. Some of my classrooms are really hot, and others are really cold.” Danbury Middle School student Cassidy Hammel • “I don’t want to send my daughter to school to be exposed to any air quality issues that will pose a health risk for her. When I send her to school, I need to know she’s in a good, healthy environment.” Vanessa Hammel, parent • “Legislators need to be made aware of the instructional losses happening in our classrooms because of these conditions. Whether classrooms are too cold or excessively hot, it all impacts students’ health and learning.” Stratford teacher and 2011 Connecticut Teacher of the Year Kristen Record “Later this spring, we’ll have classrooms reaching into the triple digits,” says Dias. “We’ll see students going to the nurse’s office or being sent home with headaches, heat exhaustion, and difficulty breathing. On winter days when our classrooms are so cold that students sit in their coats all day, it can be hard to imagine the oppressive heat that awaits us at the end of the school year. But it’s coming. And that needs to end.” Connecticut’s aging school buildings—many of them constructed more than 50 years ago—typically have outdated, poorly maintained, or nonexistent heating, ventilation, and cooling systems. Classrooms often have windows that don’t open. Some have no windows at all. Students and teachers know that by the end of the school year, indoor air temperatures will likely reach a sweltering 85 or 95 degrees. Also problematic is the incidence of mold, dirty air ducts, rodent droppings, and other health hazards making our school communities sick. “Make no mistake—these problems existed before the pandemic,” says Dias. “Today, however, COVID-19 surges and

variants along with climate change patterns give even greater urgency to concerns about air quality and air circulation in schools, where children spend the vast majority of their days.” The high school math teacher adds, “Last spring, my colleagues and I and our students found ourselves in second-floor classrooms with dangerously high temperatures and humidity levels. We were not alone. By early June, any given day was seeing dozens of Connecticut school closures due to oppressive heat. While the rooms in my school were hitting 95 degrees on a regular basis, several were in the triple digits. Some recorded temperatures of 108.” “We want our schools to be places where students feel safe, comfortable, and cared for, but that is simply not the reality,” says CEA

end of every school year, students are hit with a double whammy: learning is next to impossible, and we see a greater incidence of heatstroke, dehydration, migraines, and asthma-related illness. For perspective, Connecticut has laws on the books regulating minimum and maximum temperatures at pet stores—65 to 78 degrees. Remarkably, no such protections exist for children at school.” Connecticut lawmakers have an opportunity to change that, and CEA is urging them to act now. Proposals before the legislature would establish minimum and maximum school temperature and humidity levels for schools and provide bond funding for remediation and installation of modern HVAC systems. Legislative action “With only weeks left of the legislative session, it’s imperative that we pass laws

Executive Director Donald Williams. “With indoor air

temperatures consistently reaching unsafe levels at the beginning and

MARCH 12, 2022

OPINION: NOW IS THE TIME TO IMPROVE AIR QUALITY IN SCHOOLS

The quality of our educational facilities matters. For better or worse, school environments impact everything from our students’ physical and mental health to their behavior, memory, and academic performance, and how much or how little we invest in them sends a message. What does it say about how we value our students when we send them into buildings with mold in the ceilings, or roofs that leak? What does it say when we expect them to bundle up in coats indoors all winter, or send them home in the heat? What does it say about how children from low-income, minority, or rural families are valued when they are far more likely to

attend underfunded schools? What are the odds of retaining teachers in a district that neglects their work environment? We cannot achieve true health or education equity or excellence when we send children to crumbling, understaffed schools. Bringing school facility standards in line with those we’ve established for pets is a start. Ensuring that they remain the safe, comfortable environment our students deserve will require an ongoing commitment. Our elected officials have an opportunity to make that commitment this legislative session. We urge them to act now. Kate Dias, CEA President

...is that so many students are hurting when you look at them. ...is the anxiety. ...is the stress our children are under. ...is the cyberbullying. ...is the isolation. ...are the kids missing from class because they’ve been hospitalized after trying to hurt themselves. What you don’t see, I see every day. I see all of them. Through powerful video interviews with parents, students, school counselors, social workers, and psychologists, What You Don’t See paints a picture of what legislators need to know about school resources and how they can help. Hear and see their stories and share your own at cea.org/whatyoudontsee .