The Irvine Unified School District (IUSD) implemented a policy this year that standardizes thermostat settings to 68 to 72 degrees in all classrooms, giving teachers little control over the temperature. While the policy was created with the schools’ best interests in mind, it inadvertently affects teaching and learning environments by not considering the different needs of different classrooms.
IUSD Director of Maintenance, Operations and Transportation Joe Chapin oversaw the operation of the district facilities and noted that this policy was implemented to save energy costs across the district by optimizing heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
“Our vendors and the equipment manufacturers, they have their ideal temperature that works well with their equipment, and based on the energy use and based on what the demand is for our needs, we kind of find that happy medium,” Chapin said. “And so 72 to 68, that’s like the ideal pristine location where people like to have that; it’s that thermal comfort, that temperature range.”
Environmental factors like time of day and building type influence how effective the set temperature works for the classroom. For example, portable classrooms require lower temperature settings to counter the humidity that quickly sets into the area. In contrast, main campus buildings often have furniture positioned near ventilation, which absorbs heat and makes warming up a cold classroom more time-consuming.
English teacher Cale Kavanaugh, who has transitioned to teaching in the portables this year, notes how the portables’ air conditioning system struggles to keep up with high temperatures, particularly when the weather reaches heat advisory.
“I would appreciate the flexibility to set it cooler,” Kavanaugh said. “If it’s 68 degrees, it’s better to go from 68 to 75 than it is to go from 70 to 78 so being able to do that, I think, would be helpful.”
Standardizing classroom temperatures benefits more than energy savings, ensuring consistency and helping to maintain focus by preventing temperature fluctuations. Overall, a uniform setting can ensure stability across campus.
However, it overlooks each classroom’s wide variation. Allowing teachers a larger range would enable them to adapt the temperature to specific needs of their students and teaching conditions.
“[The AC] makes it easier to focus,” sophomore Seraphine Chen, who previously had a portable class, said. “Especially on a hot day, it helps you feel more comfortable rather than getting distracted about how warm you feel or how sweaty you feel.”
Teachers should be given control over the thermostat to better accommodate the unique needs of their classrooms, especially in situations where the standardized temperature does not accommodate neither students’ nor teachers’ needs. This adjustment would create a more comfortable and productive environment, enhancing both teaching effectiveness and student focus.
