What shape are Chittenden County schools in? A new report shows which school districts may be top of the list to receive state aid for school construction.
The report, submitted by the Agency of Education to state lawmakers, ranks school districts based on the condition of their buildings, taking into consideration date of construction, hazardous materials, indoor air quality, accessibility, HVAC, electrical, plumbing and other factors. Districts were ranked by Facility Condition Index, essentially, how much life they have left. So a district with a 75% FCI has gone through 75% of its life in its current condition.
The state hired Bureau Veritas, a contractor to work with school districts to assess their facilities between November 2021 and March 2022.
There were 385 total buildings evaluated, 305 of which were schools.
On average, Vermont schools were in fair to poor condition, with an average FCI of 71.4%. The report called it “troubling” that twenty-four of Vermont’s 54 Supervisory Unions/School Districts were over 75%, and of those, 12 were above even 80%.
The five districts indicated to have the greatest need were:
What does this report say about the condition of your child’s school? Here is a breakdown of Chittenden County School districts.
Mount Mansfield Unified Union School District was the third highest on the total list of 54 Vermont districts with a depleted percentage of 87.8%. MMUUSD has nine school properties including one preschool, five elementaries, two middle schools and one high school. The district serves the towns of Bolton, Huntington, Jericho, Richmond and Underhill.
South Burlington School District was also high up on the list, ranked 11th, at 81.3% FCI. Crumbling infrastructure, asbestos and overpopulation were some of the factors that led the district to propose building a new combined middle school, high school and athletics complex, but voters rejected the $209 million price tag in March 2020. The school district has also expressed concerns about overcrowding in its elementaries, of which there are three.
Milton Town School District was listed 16th at an FCI of 77.1%; Colchester School District was near the same range, ranked 18th with a 77% FCI.
Straddling the middle of the list were Essex-Westford School District at 25 with a 75.4% FCI and Burlington School District – 29th at 73.5%.
While the Burlington School District may be in the middle of the list, the district hopes to receive state aid for the construction of the new Burlington High School and technical center. This week community members had a chance to discuss the five building plan options for the new campus that is expected to cost as much as $197 million.
More: What could be in store for the new Burlington High and tech center? Check out the designs
The district has already allocated $11.5 million toward the project from federal coronavirus relief funds and a budget surplus. The district was beginning large-scale renovations to Burlington High School when elevated levels of airborne PCBs, cancer-causing chemicals, were found that ultimately shuttered the school in September 2020. Students have been attending school in a renovated Macy’s department store in downtown since March of 2021.
More: What could zoning issues mean for the construction of the new Burlington High School?
Champlain Valley School District was second from the bottom at 53rd with an FCI of 48.5%. Williston Central School completed a major remodel in September 2018 and Charlotte Central School was expected to start a renovation project in summer 2021.
Winooski School District was predictably at the bottom of the list. The campus building, which serves students preschool through 12th grade, is currently undergoing a major renovation which is expected to be completed this summer.
More: What is going up at the Winooski school complex?
One of the factors the state is evaluating is student exposure to hazardous materials in school facilities. In the state assessment, there were 196 confirmed instances, with 52 suspected for a total of 248. The summary didn’t indicate whether those were 248 individual buildings.
This information is expected to be updated as schools are in the process of testing for radon and airborne PCB exposure. The results of those tests mean schools have until October 2023 to complete their facilities inventory.
More: Your school will most likely be testing for PCBs soon. What you should know.
The state also tested schools and child care centers for the amount of lead in their water supply, which was completed in 2020. Taps with results above a certain level were required to be replaced. In all, 76% of schools (315 total) had at least one tap above the actionable level.
More: Vermont schools have lead in their water supply. How concerned should you be?
Building age can be an indicator of the likelihood of finding hazardous materials. The state assessment showed the average Vermont school building age to be 61 years, and 22 years to be the average amount of time since a major school renovation.
A Free Press investigation found 42 of 46 school buildings in Chittenden County were built or renovated during the period when PCBs were common in school construction.
More: The chemicals that closed Burlington High School are everywhere: What about other schools?
This assessment, once completed, is the first step in the state reinstating state aid for school construction.
The state used to help school districts fund their projects — to the tune of 30% of the total cost, according to Marty Spaulding, Burlington School District’s director of property services.
That ended in 2007 because of mounting debts for projects the state needed to pay off. Since that time, districts relied on taxpayers to foot the entire bill, which left some communities unable to pay for projects and facilities fell into greater disrepair.
“The General Assembly also finds that the backlog in the State’s school construction projects has resulted in unsafe and unhealthy learning environments and disparities in the quality of education, including between wealthier communities and communities in need across the State,” Rep. Kate Webb, D-Shelburne said in an interview with the Free Press in May 2021.
The Legislature passed Act 72 in June 2021. After the facilities assessment is completed in October of 2023, the state can begin to plan when and how to fund upcoming projects.
More: With a new high school years away, Burlington seeks to convince families to stay
Contact reporter April Barton at [email protected] or 802-660-1854. Follow her on Twitter @aprildbarton.
