Icy Cold, a Little Snow Disrupt Region's Schools

Heating Failures Close Four in D.C.

D.C. School Superintendent Clifford B. Janey announced yesterday an emergency "blitz" at 40 schools, including four closed for lack of heat, to repair boilers that failed as temperatures plunged below freezing.

For the third day this week, school officials shuffled students out of cold classrooms and buildings to avoid losing instruction time. The repairs will cost $900,000, officials said.

The closings came on a day when most Washington area school districts chose to keep students at home after an overnight dusting of snow. D.C. students went to school two hours late.

The four D.C. schools closed yesterday -- Ludlow-Taylor Elementary and H.D. Woodson Senior High in Northeast Washington and Simon Elementary and Johnson Junior High in Southeast -- will remain shuttered today, and students will be sent to nearby schools, officials said.

At more than 35 other D.C. schools, as many as 12 rooms were closed off because of the cold. Officials shut off a number of rooms at both Jefferson Junior High in Southwest and Key Elementary in Northwest and one room each at Beers Elementary in Southeast and Backus Middle School in Northeast.

"It's good they were able to accommodate [the students] in a time of emergency," said Regina Mack, whose daughter attends Simon. "I wouldn't want my child sitting up in a cold classroom."

Janey is under scrutiny as Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) seeks legislative authority to take over the schools. The Board of Education, which opposes the move, is holding a public hearing tonight to discuss its alternative proposal aimed at improving the school system without a governance change.

At a news conference, Janey said the system is hiring contractors to fix the heating systems as soon as possible. When the repairs are completed, he said, the system will address aging air-conditioning systems to avoid a crisis in the warm days of May and June.

Two weeks ago, the school board approved another emergency "blitz" to repair restrooms at about 100 of the system's 140 schools. Janey attributed the situation to aging infrastructure that had been long neglected.

On a visit to some displaced students and teachers yesterday, Janey said the problems with school heating systems were caused by a "lingering cold air mass meeting up with repairs" that had been put off for years.

"My crystal ball said we'd have a major facilities issue," Janey said. "It wasn't a question of whether we'd have challenges, but when we'd get them."

D.C. Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) expressed outrage yesterday that heating problems at Bruce-Monroe Elementary School in Northwest had not been cleared up in five years.