CHS Trying to Freeze out Students?

PIper Guiffre trying to bear the cold

Photo taken by Lily Wielar

PIper Guiffre trying to bear the cold

Lily Wielar

A typical August day at CHS includes students lugging heavy coats and oversized sweatshirts around the halls as they try to defend themselves from the freezing temperatures in their classrooms. This leads many to wonder if these extreme temperatures are necessary.

 

According to Mr. Devlin, CHS’s assistant principal and manager of building operations, “(his) Contacts have reported that 72 degrees is the set temperature in the classrooms.” Unfortunately this is not the reality that many students encounter. Data taken from around the school has shown that rooms have been as cold as 64 degrees.  

 

According to Marley Watson, “It’s just so cold at this school…I always have to bring a big jacket.” Regardless, students have little say in this matter. Mr Devlin operates as merely the informant for our schools heating and air issues.

 

“I am the point person between the facility and the school. Teachers must submit a work order for their situation to be looked into” The city actually employs the facility that runs HVAC system and they have a person monitoring it everyday at CHS.

 

“When there are extreme conditions outside, that’s when we see the most problems,” says Mr. Devlin.  As the AC tries to compete against sweltering temperatures outside rooms often get over cooled, especially large spaces.

 

“There are four air raiders on each corner of the building that pump cold air into the building. Unfortunately, not all rooms the same size resulting in some discrepancies in temperature throughout the building.” Luckily for us our school has a sound system in place to take care of serious problems as soon as they arise.

 

According to Mr. Devlin, “a serious problem is any one that has been brought to my attention.” Teachers can file a work order to report the problem and have it examined and addressed in a timely manner.

 

“I mean, I would rather be too cold because I can always put a jacket on,” says sophomore Piper Guiffre.  While the cold created by the HVAC system can be quite annoying, studies show that the cold actually makes you smarter.

 

Time Magazine reports, “It takes more energy to cool your body when it’s hot than it does to warm it up when you’re cold. The energy comes from glucose…which is also necessary for the brain’s mental processes. So basically, cooling off when it is hot uses more glucose than warming up when it’s cold; thus leaving less available glucose for the brain.” This information offers a small condolence to students, but reportedly is irrelevant to deciding our schools temperature.

 

So students, if your classroom is unbearably cold know that there is hope and that you may just be getting a little smarter.