South county schools in need of expensive upgrades, study shows

But day-to-day operations not affected

‘‘There are no major problems we have that impair what we do in terms of teaching and learning,” said Ezekiel Bloyce, principal of Morningside Elementary School in Suitland.

Bloyce said that in his seven years at Morningside, the school has never had to shut down because of bursting pipes, broken heating or any other structural deficiencies.

The school periodically has leaks in the ceiling, particularly when large snowfalls gather on the roof and then melt, he said.

Dianne Bruce, principal of Avalon Elementary School in Fort Washington, said, ‘‘I was surprised to see Avalon listed. ... It’s an old school, but it’s not run-down. It’s very clean.”

Bruce said a pipe recently broke and caused a ceiling tile to fall, but she described it as part of ‘‘normal, routine repairs” that a school of Avalon’s age requires. The school opened in 1963.

Morningside, Avalon and five other south county schools were identified as being in poor condition and requiring major repairs in a study of 184 county school buildings presented May 8 to the Prince George’s County Board of Education.

The study identified a total of $69,620,013 in repairs needed at the seven schools, a list that also includes Samuel Chase Elementary in Temple Hills, Middleton Valley Elementary in Temple Hills, Henry G. Ferguson Elementary in Accokeek, the annex building at Suitland High School, and Clinton Grove Elementary in Clinton.

The study was commissioned in September and conducted by Parsons Corp., a California-based construction and engineering company. It determined which schools were in need of upgrades by analyzing the age and condition of the foundation, structure, roof, heating, air conditioning and other systems.

School officials said having seven south county schools identified by the study was positive, because it draws attention to their age and need for upgrades.

‘‘The funding hasn’t been shifted in equity over the years,” said Bruce, who has been Avalon’s principal for 14 years. ‘‘It’s nothing new. I think they’re beginning to see that now.”

Only one school north of Route 4 – Tulip Grove Elementary in Bowie –also was classified as being in poor condition.

‘‘The majority of the schools in the southern area are more than 40 or 50 years old, and they have been on the list for a while,” school board member Linda T. Thomas (Dist. 4) of Temple Hills said.

Five of the eight county schools listed in poor condition are in Thomas’ district.

Principals said the most important upgrades their schools need are those that relate to the increasing presence of technology in classrooms.

‘‘The biggest problem I would say here would be electrical, because of the technology we’re bringing into the school,” Samuel Chase Principal Marie Jackson said.

Jackson said her classrooms do not have enough electrical outlets to adequately handle the computers, projectors and other electronics teachers and students are using.

Bloyce, whose school was built in 1954, said that because of technology, ‘‘you can’t operate 20 years down the road in buildings like this.”

Jackson said that along with electrical upgrades, her school could use a bigger parking lot and a newer playground.

School board members said they plan to hold a work session to discuss in detail the study, which identified a total $2.8 billion in repairs needed over the next 10 years. No date has been set for the session.

Heating and air-conditioning upgrades comprise the largest single cost, at $716 million. Older schools generally have central heating, but rely on window units for air conditioning.

E-mail Andy Zieminski at azieminski@gazette.net.