COLORADO, USA — Students in two northern Colorado school districts will be released two hours early on Wednesday and Thursday due to the extreme heat.
The Poudre School District, which covers the Fort Collins area, and the Thompson School District, which covers the Loveland area, announced those plans on Tuesday.
Poudre Schools
In the Poudre School District, school will begin at the normal time, and both breakfast and lunch will be served on the early release days. Normal operations are expected on Friday, the district said.
>The video above is about heat trends for September in Colorado.
According to the district, most of their schools do not have air conditioning and some only have it in some areas, such as computer labs or media centers.
They've been working to address the issue by opening school doors earlier in the mornings to draw in cool air before closing them before the first bell and buying fans for all classrooms. Those efforts are not enough to combat the high temperatures expected this week, which can result in classrooms reaching temperatures in the high 80s or low 90s, the district said.
The district said its working through a process to get cost estimates and timelines to install AC but said that is likely a multi-million dollar project that will take years to complete. The district is also looking at how changes to the school calendar could be used to address the issue.
Of their 55 schools (including PSD-authorized charters), 33 (about 60%) do not have air conditioning. That's a mix of elementary, middle and high schools. The early release affects all schools, even those that have air conditioning.
Thompson School District
The majority of schools in the Thompson School District are not fully air-conditioned, the district said.
That can lead to high building temperatures that can pose safety risks, the district said. That prompted the district to make the decision to close two hours early on Wednesday and Thursday.
Schools will begin at their normally scheduled times on both days. Breakfast and lunch will be served to students, and activities and events on Wednesday and Thursday will continue to run at their normal schedule.
The Denver Public School District is also releasing students early due to the heat.
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Colorado Climate