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Bowling Green City Schools with no air-conditioning during record heat; leaders hope voters will approve levy

With temperatures around the 90-degree mark Tuesday, schools in BG were hot. Some in the community hope voters will consider that when voting on a levy in November.

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio — For several months, Bowling Green City Schools have been working to get new schools for their students. After two failed levy attempts, they are back on the ballot hoping this time will be different so they can better address the needs of their students. 

Those needs are more evident on unseasonably warm days like Tuesday. Record-setting heat and schools with no air conditioning don't make for a great combination.

"It's just a miserable learning environment and not a lot gets done on these days," said Francis Scruci, Bowling Green City Schools Superintendent.

WTOL's First Alert Weather app showed Bowling Green at about 86 degrees outside at 6 p.m. 

Families said if you go inside their building you won't feel any relief because they don't have air conditioning in the high school or elementary buildings.

"The kids by the end of the day everybody is tired, everybody's hot, everybody's sticky, but you know we just know that's what it is," said Hans Glandorff, a Bowling Green High School teacher.

"I've heard from her plenty,” recalled Kate Mejiritski of her now graduated daughter’s days in school. “She told me it was hard to concentrate sitting there sweat dripping down."

While school leaders have attempted to fund new schools, that request was denied by voters. So, in an attempt to help the youngest students, they are back on the ballot this November.

The proposal is different than what they’ve shown voters in the past, building one consolidated community elementary school. If approved, school leaders said the levy would raise $40 million and be split evenly between a property and income tax lasting 30 years.

"It's an issue about providing the best education that we can for our students and the best learning environment for our students and right now we're not meeting those needs," Scruci said.

While elementary students would be the only ones seeing the change, parents and teachers in the high school said they feel this levy is still what's best.

"I see it as a necessity,” Glandorff said. “It's money out of my pocket also and I am going to do that for the children that I don't have in the district anymore."

BG had several sporting events on Tuesday. Those watching volleyball needed a fan, while others outside at soccer sat comfortably in the shade. The Mejiritskis were there to watch their son play soccer. They aren't from the U.S. but are proud citizens now who've never voted down a school levy.

"We didn't come from this country, right,” Alex Mejiritski, parent to a Bowling Green freshman, said. “But I believe we live in the greatest country in the world right now and for the greatest country in the world to have schools that are not adequate for children to be in and study, worse than the schools where I came from is just not acceptable."

While we only found supporters of the November school levy on Tuesday, there are people who oppose it. Some feel it's not a necessity to have air conditioning, but a want. The superintendent, however, disagrees.

"Times have changed and while that may seem like a luxury it is a contributing factor to education today," Scruci said.

As school leaders hope the temperatures drop, voters can cast their ballot on Nov. 5.

For more information on the issues you can click here.

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