These are the Denver Public Schools without AC
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Thousands of Denver Public School children started classes this week — with outside temperatures hovering in the 90s — and no air conditioning in their classrooms.
The big picture: 29 DPS schools don't have cooling units, something the district wants to fix with a bond package that voters will decide on in November by earmarking $240 million to install the systems.
By the numbers: Roughly 21,000 students across the district — nearly a quarter of DPS' total student population — are affected.
What they're saying: The impact of the heat in those classrooms varies from distraction to discomfort and worse.
- "It's hard to listen because it's so hot and it gives me headaches," one Goldrick Elementary fifth grader told KDVR at the southwest Denver school.
- The school's principal, Taryn Rawson, told the news station high temperatures inside the building have caused nosebleeds for some students.
Between the lines: The affected schools are spread across the city, from Denver's working-class neighborhoods to the metro's most affluent areas.
The intrigue: If the bond package is approved, 20 schools would get more sustainable cooling systems using electric-powered units instead of gas — something students advocated for this past school year, Denverite reports.