Eagles QB Jalen Hurts helps cool Philadelphia schools
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Jalen Hurts' gift will equip 10 district schools with adequate air conditioning. Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images
Nearly 200 Philadelphia classrooms now have air conditioning, thanks to a $200,000 donation from Jalen Hurts.
Why it matters: The lack of adequate cooling systems in some district schools has interrupted teaching, led to early dismissals and made hiring educators difficult.
Driving the news: The Eagles quarterback's gift is helping the Philly school district make strides in its goal to equip every school with adequate air conditioning by 2027.
By the numbers: 63 district schools currently have inadequate cooling, Paul Bonewicz, maintenance director for the School District of Philadelphia, said during a news conference Tuesday.
- The average school building is over 70 years old — and some have been around more than a century.
- Many buildings lack the electrical capacity to upgrade the cooling systems, which costs between $1 million to $1.5 million to modernize, Bonewicz says.
Zoom in: Gloria Casarez Elementary School in Kensington is among the first of 10 schools to get new air conditioners installed thanks to Hurts' donation.
- There, classroom temperatures sometimes soar into the 90s, but the 41 new wall-mounted units should reduce the heat by about 20 degrees, Bonewicz said.
Next up: Castor Gardens Middle School in Northeast Philly and Roosevelt Elementary in Northwest.
- Those installations should be completed by early September.
What they're saying: Gloria Casarez's principal Awilda Balbuena said that the cooler classrooms will allow students to be more engaged when classes resume on Aug. 26.
- Plus, Balbuena is hopeful it'll help with hiring too. Some prospective teachers didn't want to work in blistering classrooms without air conditioning, Balbuena said at the news conference.
Zoom out: Like Philly, some neighboring states have shortened school days — and even school years in response to heat.
- Balbuena tells Axios that her school averaged three to five early dismissals each year because of the heat.
What's ahead: The new air conditioners will allow Gloria Casarez to hold summer school for the first time, says Balbuena, who has spent 15 years there.