Parents Frustrated As Long Valley Schools Stayed Open In Extreme Heat

LONG VALLEY, NJ — Last week saw extreme summer temperatures across New Jersey, resulting in several schools across the state and county cutting the day short on both Thursday and Friday.

The Washington Township School District elected to remain open for full-day schedules throughout the week, which several parents criticized. During the Sept. 12, school board meeting, one of those parents expressed disappointment that the schools did not call a half-day last week when temperatures outside reached 90 degrees.

Last week, a heat advisory was placed in effect for much of the Garden State, with maximum “feels like” temperatures expected to reach up to 103 degrees, forecasters said.

“Simply put, the next several days will be dangerously hot,” the National Weather Service said at the time. “During a heat wave, practice heat safety wherever you are. Heat-related deaths and illnesses are preventable!”

"My child came home from school Thursday and Friday soaked," local parent Jennifer Houser said.

Houser reported that she arrived at the middle school on Friday morning for a meeting and was faced with hot and sticky conditions, claiming that the air conditioning vents in the room she was in were not working correctly and were not pumping out any air.

"I don't understand what the guidelines are and when you decide when not to torture our students," Houser said.

Parents also noted that neighboring school districts, like the Morris School District and the Madison Public School District, had decided to schedule an early release.

According to Superintendent of Schools Peter Turnamian, the choice to keep schools open last week was challenging, but the administration had been closely monitoring the situation for the benefit of all children.

Two of the school buildings in the district currently have HVAC units, while the other two do not. Turnamian claimed that the two schools that did not have full air conditioning were given extra fans to help cool the students down.

Teachers were also instructed to move classrooms around the building to spaces that were colder to help deal with the heat.

"We monitored it very closely," Turnamian said.

Another factor that stopped the administration from calling an early release last week was the fact that it is still very early in the school year. "The first days of school matter, and we really want to set a strong tone of academics and community with the start of this school year. We didn't take lightly the idea of, 'Ok, we're just going to start with some early dismissals now.'" Turnamian said.

The administration also emphasized that scenarios like this are one of the reasons why the district decided to hold the vote earlier this year, adding that several of the capital projects mentioned in the referendum include HVAC upgrades.

The referendum, which was voted on by voters back in March, approved $28.8 million in funding for district-wide renovation projects such as infrastructure upgrades, classroom renovations and instructional additions.

The projects included in the referendum are as follows:

• Long Valley Middle School
  • Installation of a generator
  • HVAC upgrades inclusive of air conditioning and asbestos abatement of floor tile
  • Court renovations
  • Renovation of unused space for STEM program and PAC upgrades
  • Electrical upgrades
  • renovated public address system
  • New paving/sidewalks
  • Renovations to the Culinary Arts Room
• Flocktown-Kossmann Elementary School
  • Installation of air conditioning in Flocktown
  • HVAC upgrades include air conditioning in Kossmann
  • New boiler in Kossmann
  • New windows in Kossmann
  • Enhanced storage for classrooms in both buildings
  • Renovation of media center for the STEM program in both buildings
  • Electrical upgrades in both buildings
  • Roof replacement in both buildings
  • New paving/sidewalks
• Benedict A. Cucinella Elementary School
  • Renovation of Media Center for STEM program
  • New paving/drainage enhancements
  • Rebuilt front pillars and steel painting
  • Outdoor upgrades
• Old Farmer's Road Elementary School
  • New paving/sidewalks
  • Enhanced storage for classrooms
  • Renovation of the media center for STEM program