As Denver Public Schools students head back to class on Monday, some students will be walking into a cooler building as part of the district’s push to get air conditioning into all of its schools.
Asbury Elementary is one of the schools that just finished its AC installation following a two-year project.
“When I walked into this building, it was about three weeks ago. It was a 98-degree day and I walked in and it was hotter inside than it was out. Today, I walked in and I feel refreshed. I feel like comfortable,” DPS director of construction Heather Bock said.
Most of the district’s building are around 50 years old with some reaching 100 years.
“Trying to incorporate 21st century technology into these buildings has been really difficult. Now, understanding that the time and dollars it takes to make sure we have comfortable environments for our students to thrive in really makes a difference,” Bock said.
The district started with 29 schools in need of full air conditioning. Two were completed last year, nine by the fall this year, and the 18 schools left will be worked on over the next two years. This was made possible because of a 2024 voter-approved bond that set aside $240 million dollars for the air conditioning project.
DPS decides which schools get air conditioning first by using two factors: a heat index which tracks the hottest buildings and an equity index, based on things like income levels and student needs.
Denver Public Schools director of construction Heather Bock told Denver7 the new air conditioning being installed at the schools have the ability to be remotely operated.
“These controls also help us maintain a sense of temperature. We set a temperature point throughout the district that's called a set point, and we can maintain that, observe it, and even fix it sometimes from a remote location such as our facilities department,” Bock added.
For the schools that are still without air conditioning, the district uses heat mitigation measures, like opening windows early in the morning and shutting them before it gets hot, dropping the shades on south and west-facing windows to help maintain the temperature in the building, or sending students home early.
“Many of our buildings only have partial cooling or refuge areas where we have an auditorium that's cooled. So, understanding that we have made a huge dent in helping with the climate in our buildings, we still have more work to do,” Bock said.
DPS said the goal is to have all schools air conditioned by the end of 2028.
