Jalen Hurts' $200K donation helps 8 more Philadelphia schools to have air conditioning this school year
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The classrooms at Gloria Casarez Elementary School and seven more schools are cooler for this upcoming school year, thanks to a series of air conditioning installations that the School District of Philadelphia hopes will transform the learning environment for students and teachers alike.
For the first time in her 15 years as principal, Awilda Balbuena can walk through the school knowing her students won't need to battle the sweltering heat.
"The kids will start learning because there won't be that obstacle of let's take breaks, let's get those water breaks, let's put our heads down and cool off," Balbuena said.
In July, 41 air conditioning units were installed at Gloria Casarez Elementary as part of a broader effort by the School District of Philadelphia to address the lack of sufficient cooling in many of its aging buildings.
Across the district's 226 buildings, 163 are now sufficiently cooled, meaning all classrooms and office spaces have air conditioning. However, 63 buildings still lack proper cooling, and upgrades are ongoing. According to Paul Bonewicz, the executive director for facilities management services, many of these buildings require significant electrical infrastructure improvements before additional air conditioning units can be installed.
"Some of our buildings are over 70, 80 years old, and we cannot just go put 41 units in a building that has a 400-amp circuit service coming in," Bonewicz said. "There's engineering involved, there's intensive labor because we're, in essence, upgrading the service to the building."
The district has been making strides, with recent funds from the Jalen Hurts Foundation providing a much-needed boost. In April, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts announced his foundation's donation of $200,000 to help outfit schools with air conditioning units. Over the summer, the funds were used to purchase 199 units, eight of which were installed at schools across the district, including Gloria Casarez Elementary. The seven others include Clara Barton, D. Newlin Fell, Thomas Finletter, Fitler Academics Plus, Benjamin Franklin/Science Leadership Academy, Edward Gideon and Abram Jenks.
Two additional buildings -- Castor Gardens Middle School and Roosevelt Elementary School -- are in the process of being upgraded and are expected to be sufficiently cooled by the end of September.
The impact of these upgrades extends beyond comfort. Balbuena noted that the new air conditioning has already made a difference in teacher recruitment.
"It's been really hard to hire teachers to come work here when I don't have that AC as an option for them. So this year, that was part of our hiring strategy," she said.
Looking ahead, Balbuena is excited about the opportunities these improvements will bring, including the possibility of hosting summer school for the first time in 2025.
"Summer school here next year for the first time ever," she said. "We're really looking forward to that."