Many Cleveland students attend schools in extreme heat zones
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As K-12 students in Cleveland head back to school in the coming weeks, a large portion will sit in classrooms in extreme urban heat zones, a new analysis finds.
Why it matters: The heat island effect can make some neighborhoods notably warmer than others, especially during heat waves.
Driving the news: 92% of public K-12 students in Cleveland attend schools where the heat island effect increases temperatures by at least 8°F, according to Climate Central.
- That's the eighth-highest percentage among the 65 most populous U.S. cities and well above the national rate of 76%.
Zoom in: In past years, Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) closed several schools that lacked air conditioning and moved to remote learning due to high temperatures.
- During a board meeting last December, CMSD CEO Warren Morgan said some schools still need air conditioning, as the district deals with financial struggles.
What they're saying: "We currently still have 10 schools without AC," CMSD spokesperson Jon Benedict tells Axios.
- "In some instances, we've placed AC units where possible, but the electrical capacity in these older buildings cannot usually support units at scale."