HOUSTON – As temperatures climb across the Houston area, some Houston Independent School District parents say their children are also facing uncomfortable conditions inside their classrooms.
Parents at Horn Elementary School say students and teachers have been dealing with broken air conditioning since the beginning of the school year — creating distractions and making it difficult to learn during the recent heat wave.
“We’re at the mercy of HISD, and HISD will not get the AC fixed,” parent Lori Williamson said.
Williamson said the issue has not been resolved.
“Not only is it sad for the students, but also the teachers,” she said. “The teachers have to be able to teach.”
Hung Dang, whose daughter attends Horn Elementary, said the timing has been especially frustrating.
“It just hasn’t been resolved, and it’s a bit frustrating — in the middle of a heat wave,” Dang said.
His daughter, Julia, said the school has been using fans to help manage the heat.
“We have a lot of fans,” she said.
KPRC 2 cameras were at the school as temporary air conditioning units were delivered. But parents say those units are only a short-term fix.
In an email sent to families Tuesday, the Horn Elementary PTO said its board held an emergency vote and approved the rental of 31 district-approved portable AC units for more than $8,300.
The PTO said the units are intended to “provide immediate relief while Houston ISD works to resolve the underlying HVAC issues.”
Parents who contacted the KPRC 2 Help Desk said the portable air conditioners were not turned on at the beginning of the school day. They said the units were turned on in the afternoon and then turned off when students left for the day.
Parents continue to demand the district address the issue.
“It’s so warm in there. I feel like it’s torturing them,” she said. “Fix this immediately.”
KPRC 2 reached out to Houston ISD about the HVAC issues and the concerns raised by parents. The district’s response will be posted on Click2Houston.com when it is received.
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