HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — The Guam Department of Education is actively trying to meet the 14 points required by law to ensure every child is given an adequate education, according to the department. Among those points is the proper ventilation of classrooms to 78 degrees.
The effort to cool down classrooms so that they are conducive to learning is an ongoing process, GDOE said, adding that to date, the air conditioning contractor has installed in excess of 725 classroom units.
“They will also be working with us to add air condition(ing) to Astumbo Middle, which will be able to open after,” GDOE Superintendent Kenneth Erik Swanson reported to the Guam Education Board on Tuesday.
Astumbo Middle School in Dededo was identified by GDOE officials as a Tier III school, which meant that the sanitary and safety needs of the school were more difficult to address. Post files indicate that Astumbo students now are sharing a campus with V.S.A. Benavente Middle School, also in Dededo.
Astumbo is on schedule for inspection in April. Swanson said he hopes to reopen the school and return students to their home campus after the Easter break.
“Schools with larger than 5-ton duct units will be installed later in the sequence due to the purchase and manufacturing requirement to get them on island,” Swanson said.
The larger units at leased schools will be serviced separately through the lease program, he said.
“I mentioned Astumbo Middle School, I also would like to add we had a conference call with (Department of Administration Director Edward Birn) and Mr. Wilson, … who is going to be here on island. They (are) working out the funding to move to the leaseholder so they can do the procurement of the large units for Okkodo High School and Astumbo Middle School,” Swanson said.
AC installation for the entire district will take several more months before complete, he said.
“Installation contracts will be complete across the whole system by next school year. Then we go into a two-year warranty period for servicing what’s been installed,” Swanson explained.
A line of cars is seen at Astumbo Middle School in March 2021.
