The ‘Big Chill’ could hit Cedar Hill classrooms this winter

At its most recent meeting, the Cedar Hill School Board discussed setting a district energy policy for the upcoming school year. If passed, that energy policy could include this:

A district energy policy, which Chief Financial Officer Mike McSwain presented to the board for initial reading, would ban space heaters in classrooms, among other things.

Personal refrigerators, coffee makers and microwaves will also be verboten from classrooms if the new policy is adopted.

The energy policy in general seems to presume teachers and students are cold-blooded. It calls for classroom air conditioning to be at 74 degrees, but heating at just 65 degrees.

If you're a basketball or volleyball player, though, you get the extra winter comfort of 68 degrees in gyms.

I think 67, while offering energy savings a degree off 65, would be good enough. That said, at older school buildings, space heaters might be an electric safety issue as much as an energy issue.