Latest news with #PoudreSchoolDistrict
CBS News
15 hours ago
- Climate
- CBS News
32 schools in one Northern Colorado school district don't have air conditioning, and classes are being cut short
Nine months after voters approved a mill levy to provide Poudre School District with $49 million a year for school improvements, 32 of those schools still remain without air conditioning. PSD, which primarily serves Fort Collins, is one of the largest school districts in Northern Colorado. However, they are the only district that has needed to start the first seven days of their school year with early release for thousands of kids due to classroom temperatures. Since the mill levy was approved, only two schools underwent construction for the addition of air conditioning, leaving 32 others to go through the 2025-2026 school year without sufficient cooling systems. The district declined multiple interview requests in the last week from CBS News Colorado about the situation. However, via statement, a district spokesperson said many schools currently have swamp coolers or other cooling devices scattered throughout their building. However, those devices are not enough to cool the building for the whole day. As a result, PSD has elected to start their school year with seven straight days of early release for all elementary and middle school students. That means those grades are let out two hours early, resulting in some students being let out of school shortly after 12 p.m. "If we stay in the school too long it gets hot," said Makai Palmer, an elementary school student in PSD. "(Most of the day) it's fine. But, when it gets too hot, we have to leave." PSD says their decision to call early release for more than a week of classes is the result of a series of factors including the number of consecutive days in which the forecast projects temperatures to exceed 90 degrees, at least one day over 95 degrees and a heat index rating. Many parents have taken to social media and more to express their frustrations with the district, noting the early release often causes adults to have to either skip work or pay for day care. Brandon Santoni is a local parent. He walked to pick up his son from school on Monday just after 1 p.m. Fortunately he works from home, but he had sympathy for those who do not have the same capabilities. "We are a little bit flexible in our workday schedule, so we can make it here for the early release and then he has supervision at home. So, for us, it's not too much of an inconvenience. But I can imagine the other end of the spectrum where people are at the office and need afternoon care, it could be a little more difficult," Santoni said. For Makai, he is fortunate to have an extended family that can help his immediate family during this time. On Monday he was picked up by his grandfather, Robert Ingram. "We are able to kind of work around it. I can pick up my grandson, if I can't then grandma can get him. If mom can't get him then great grandma will pick him up," Ingram said. With some parents suggesting a later start to school, the district said they align their start dates with testing schedules and a nearby community college so high schoolers can coordinate studies with college credits. "I think we are fine at the time it starts," Santoni said. CBS News Colorado reached out to three other nearby major school districts to inquire why only PSD had issues with the warmth of late. Weld RE-4, which largely serves Windsor as well as parts of Severance and Greeley, confirmed all of their school buildings have air conditioning. The Greeley-Evans school district said their buildings also have air conditioning. Nearby Thompson School District, which predominantly serves Loveland and other towns, said half of their school buildings have air conditioning. A spokesperson said a majority of the other buildings have air conditioning at least in common areas.
CBS News
7 days ago
- Climate
- CBS News
Northern Colorado school district dismissing early on first day of school as temperatures rise
The Poudre School District has announced plans to release thousands of students early from their first and second days of school this week. PSD, which predominantly serves Fort Collins, will release all elementary and middle school students two hours before regular release in response to warm classrooms. The district made the announcement two days before classes were set to begin. The decision comes as Colorado's Front Range is expected to experience heat nearing 100 degrees to end the week. Mona Burkett spent her day on Tuesday enjoying a Fort Collins park with her grandchildren before they return to school. However, when she learned the kids would need to be picked up two hours early on Thursday and Friday, she said that would be an inconvenience. "People have to work. It is very difficult to get out early to go get your kids at school," Burkett said. Luckily for the mother of the children in PSD, Burkett can pick up her grandchildren from school. She said, however, that it will come at the expense of her own plans. The move by PSD comes as some of the buildings in the district either have insufficient air conditioning or no air conditioning at all. "Why wouldn't they, in this day and age, not have air conditioning?" Burkett said. The lack of modern air conditioning standards was a similar concern for Barb Nesbitt, a grandmother of a PSD student in Timnath. "I am curious as to why there isn't air conditioning in the buildings," Nesbitt said. While many buildings in the district feature air conditioning, not all do. All high schools in the district will remain on the regular school schedule because the buildings for the teenagers have air conditioning. However, the excludes Centennial High and Polaris Expeditionary and Poudre Community Academy. All mountain campus schools will also remain on the regular schedule. PSD said the decision to cut back school hours for impacted schools came after three criteria were met. Those included three consecutive days over 90 degrees, one day over 95, and a heightened heat risk index. Nesbitt said she was curious how hot the buildings would get that it would demand classes be adjusted. "It depends on how hot it gets in the classroom. I suppose if it gets about 75, it may be a little uncomfortable," Nesbitt said. With the final decision already made, some said their frustrations ultimately come down to a concern with facilities, not with school hour decisions. "When I was a kid and we didn't have air conditioning, it was what it was," Burkett said. "But not this day and age, they should retrofit them."
Yahoo
12-08-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Heat-related early releases, closures possible as Poudre School District begins new year
With forecasts calling for high temperatures of 97 degrees on the first two days students return to school for the start of the 2025-26 school year, Poudre School District is reminding the community of its protocol for heat-related early releases or school closures. The district will consider, but not necessarily implement, two-hour early releases or full-day closures for all elementary and middle schools and alternative high schools other than its three mountain elementary schools, whenever: The HeatRisk Index for Larimer County, as determined by the National Weather Service, is at the red (major) or magenta (extreme) levels NWS forecasted highs of 95 degrees or above for ZIP code 80525 NWS forecasted highs of 90 degrees for three consecutive days, including weekends, for ZIP code 80525 'The meeting of these conditions does not automatically result in a heat-related early release or closure,' the protocol on the district website reads. 'As these decisions are made, the district will notify staff and families.' Schools subject to heat-related early releases and closures include all early childhood programs and elementary schools other than Livermore, Red Feather and Stove Prairie, all middle schools, Centennial High School, Polaris Expeditionary Learning School and Poudre Community Academy, according to the district policy. PSD's traditional high schools — Fort Collins, Fossil Ridge, Poudre and Rocky Mountain — all have air conditioning and would remain open, as would Timnath and Wellington middle-high schools, Poudre Global Academy and Transitions Pathways programs. Conditions at the mountain elementary schools will be monitored but remain in session unless otherwise noted, the district policy reads. The NWS forecast Aug. 11 for the 80525 ZIP code for Aug. 13, the first day of school for sixth- and ninth-graders in PSD, and Aug. 14, the first day of school for all students in the district, called for a high temperature of 97 each day. PSD is adding air conditioning to all of its school buildings that don't have it with money from the 2024 debt-free schools mill levy that was approved by voters. But it can only complete a handful of schools each year because of financial constraints and the availability of contractors to perform the work, Chief Financial Officer Dave Montoya has said in multiple presentations to the Board of Education over the past two years. Reporter Kelly Lyell covers education, breaking news, some sports and other topics of interest for the Coloradoan. Contact him at kellylyell@ and This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Heat-related early releases or closures possible as school year begins Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Poudre School District board appoints candidate to temporarily fill board vacancy
The Poudre School District Board of Education has appointed a temporary board member to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of board member Carolyn Reed. Reed resigned in May after 11 years on the board and with six months remaining in her final four-year term. Andrew Spain was appointed during the board's special meeting June 17 to temporarily represent District E, according to a Poudre School District news release. Spain will serve on the board representing District E through the next regular school board election on Nov. 4, when voters will elect a representative to serve a full term. Spain is also running for a long-term seat on the board and is the only candidate for the District E seat as of June 25. District E includes northern and western Larimer County, including Wellington, Red Feather Lakes and Poudre Canyon. Spain served as a parent representative last year on the Facilities Planning Steering Committee that was tasked with recommending school consolidations and closures to address declining enrollment. He has a doctorate in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Missouri and works as the associate executive director for the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, Spain previously told the Coloradoan. Spain "brings leadership experience in education, healthcare, and nonprofit sectors" to the board, according to the district news release. He lives in Wellington with his wife, and they are both Poudre School District graduates. They have seven children ages 16 to 32. Spain is the only person running for District E as of June 25, but others have announced their candidacy to represent District C and District D. Candidates running for District C (representing northeast Fort Collins) include Sabrina Herrick and Kayla Baise, who filed paperwork to run with the Colorado Secretary of State's Office on June 11. The District C seat is currently held by Kristen Draper, the board's president, but Draper is term-limited and cannot run for reelection. Candidates running for District D (representing northwest Fort Collins) include Tom Griggs, Coronda Ziegler and Mike Thomas. Jim Brokish currently holds this seat but does not plan to run for reelection. Candidates must live in the geographic district they represent but are elected by all voters in the school district, which spans more than 1,800 square miles. The volunteer directors serve four-year terms. This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Poudre School District Board of Education fills District E vacancy
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Longest-serving member of Poudre School District Board of Education announces resignation
Carolyn Reed, the longest-serving member of the Poudre School District Board of Education, is resigning May 27 after 11 years and with six months remaining in her current four-year term. Reed notified the school district of her resignation May 20 and confirmed it May 22 in an interview with the Coloradoan. The Board of Education scheduled a special meeting May 27, before it's regularly scheduled meeting that night, to formally accept the resignation. The school board can then begin accepting applications to fill the position on a temporary basis until the November 2025 election. 'I feel like the district is in good hands,' Reed told the Coloradoan. 'If I thought that things were going to go sideways, I would hang in there. Improvement in reading, mental health and on-time graduation rates, opening of a new (integrated learning services) center, a move toward the trades and (career and technical education) being better supported — those were all things that were important to me when I got on the board.' On May 20, 2024, the school board approved moving its integrated learning services Transition Pathways programs for adults ages 18 to 21 with special needs into a portion of the building at Prospect Road and Stover Street that houses Poudre Global Academy beginning with the 2025-26 school year. Reed, 65, said she wants to spend more time with her family, including some trips this summer. She and her husband, David Johnson, have five adult children and seven grandchildren. 'I think it's time to start focusing on my family,' Reed said. 'I lost a son two years ago, and I was sitting in a board meeting one year ago when a brother died. I have a sick sister now, too. The last two years, as far as loss goes in my family, has been hard.' The legal settlement the district reached May 13 with the victims of former bus attendant Tyler Zanella and their families, in which the district agreed to pay $16.2 million, also played a big role in her decision, Reed said. 'I've been thinking about this for a while,' Reed said. 'I thought that I needed to stay on the board until we settled the Zanella case, because I felt that started under my leadership, and I should stay until it was finished.' Reed was originally appointed to the District E seat on the Board of Education in May of 2014 to fill a vacancy created when another member, Nicholas Holian, resigned to accept a job in Florida. Reed was elected to a two-year term in November 2015 and to four-year terms in November 2017 and November 2021. Term limits would prevent her from running for reelection in November 2025, when her current term expires. One candidate, Andrew Spain, has already announced plans to run for the District E seat in the November 2025 election, and Reed expects others to come forward, as well, as news of her resignation spreads. PSD's seven board members must reside in the district they represent but are elected by a voters throughout the district. Reed grew up in Wellington, where she still lives, and graduated from Poudre High School. 'It feels strange to be leaving,' Reed said. "My finger hovered over the 'send' key for quite a while. I had tears coming to my eyes and had to walk outside afterward and had to really clear my head. After you've done something for 11 years and really poured yourself into it, it's difficult to leave. But like I said earlier, I know the district's in good hands.' Reporter Kelly Lyell covers education, breaking news, some sports and other topics of interest for the Coloradoan. Contact him at kellylyell@ and This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: PSD school board member announces resignation
