‘Absolutely horrendous’: Henrico parents, students alarmed by ongoing heat issues in schools

HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Parents and students are voicing their mounting frustration as reports of heat issues increase across the Henrico County school district. In the past week, 8News has received complaints of little to no heat in three of the county's public schools: Gayton Elementary School, Shady Grove Elementary School and the Academy at Virginia Randolph. A parent and student of the Academy at Virginia Randolph spoke with 8News on the matter. "It's absolutely horrendous in there -- like, it is so cold," said senior Elena Ramirez. "Even if you're [wearing] all double layers, you still feel the cold and you're like, 'Why is this happening?" "They have a few space heaters going on there, but it's not enough to heat the building to make it comfortable for the employees to work there and for the children to focus on the main reason why they're there -- their education," said Ramirez's mother, Jennifer Anderson. IN RICHMOND: At least two Richmond schools see heating issues amid arctic blast According to the school district, following a two-week winter break and one week of inclement weather along with water shortages, part of the academy's HVAC system needed to be reset. There has also been ongoing construction on the academy's campus since Sept. 2023. The school district provided 8News with a statement about the academy's heading issues, which read, in part: "... When students arrived for school on their first Monday back (Jan. 13), the system was back working, but not at 100%. While it’s improved, the extreme cold does present challenges in keeping such a large area heated to optimal temperatures. As you stated, there is also ongoing construction on the Virginia Randolph campus, which can cause temporary impacts to HVAC as older and newer components are integrated into the system. We continue to work with the vendor to limit issues as much as possible and complete work quickly. When needed, portable heaters are available. Other times, students are temporarily relocated to warmer spaces within the building. (These are not uncommon tactics employed across all of the school division’s schools and centers, if conditions warrant it.)" Ken Blackstone, spokesperson for Henrico County Public Schools 8News asked the school division about the status of the other schools mentioned, Shady Grove Elementary and Gayton Elementary. District officials said that, regarding Shady Grove Elementary, four classrooms have been impacted as a specific part of the HVAC system has to be replaced and shipped. Businesses still struggling as city of Richmond announces ‘Water Recovery Week Regarding the overall heating problems impacting certain schools across the division, the spokesperson provided 8News with this statement: "We have 72 schools and centers and systems that heat and cool millions of square feet, so there are problems that occur intermittently with such a large infrastructure. While these can occur anytime, extreme weather conditions like we’re having now place a significant strain on our heating systems, leading to uneven temperatures in certain areas of a school. Our maintenance team is working diligently to address these issues and ensure that all classrooms and common areas are comfortable for our students and staff, so they are being completed ASAP." Ken Blackstone, spokesperson for Henrico County Public Schools