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August 27, 2024
GLPS Families:
We had an outstanding first day throughout the district, and it was wonderful to see students and staff back in our BK-8 classrooms!
We appreciate the patience of our families as we have navigated the recent heat, and we know that it has impacted our high school families in particular. We made the right call today by postponing the start of school for GLHS, as other districts around us made similar decisions. The temperatures inside the high school this afternoon were warmer than they were yesterday. The chiller did its best to keep up, but it did overload a number of times. Our maintenance team has done an outstanding job of monitoring the system and keeping it running. I visited every other school today, and while it was warm throughout the district, the building cooling systems allowed our teachers to teach and our kids to learn.
We monitored the high school throughout the day today, and we are confident, based on the forecast for tonight and tomorrow, that the temperatures in the building will be reasonable in the morning, but we continue to be concerned about afternoon heat.
Based on today’s trends, we will run a half-day schedule at the high school tomorrow, with a half-day dismissal time at 11:10. All other school buildings and programs, including distance learning, will operate normally tomorrow, with a full day of school, as the cooling systems across the rest of the district continue to be fully operational.. This plan will allow our high school students to get their school year started, but also create extra space and time for our chiller to work effectively. Please note that while the temperatures should be much better in the morning, it will still be warm in the high school. Please make sure students have water, and dress in cool and comfortable clothing. We plan to use the afternoon to install 20 new additional room-level air conditioners to help get us through this fall, as we expect them to be delivered tomorrow morning.
With yesterday’s message, we received some questions regarding air conditioning and the state of the high school in general. I wanted to take this opportunity to share that GLHS is unique in its layout in that it has a number of internal classrooms that do not have windows or access to consistent airflow if the chiller is down. That means that those spaces heat up quickly and do not cool down quickly. We spent this summer changing out internal components like pipes and mechanical systems, in preparation for three brand new chillers to be installed next summer. These will replace the current single chiller, which was a part of the 1997 construction project. Unfortunately, because it requires the entire school to be shut down, the work has to be done over summer breaks. So, the work we completed this summer prepares us to complete the project next summer. This project was done independently of the secure entrance addition that was also a part of this summer’s work.
We appreciate your support, and for giving us the opportunity to work with you and your children every day. We look forward to a great school year, and of welcoming our high school students back tomorrow morning! As always, I am #proudtobeacomet!
Dr. Bill Barnes
Superintendent of Schools
