Students at the St. Croix Central High School. By. V.I. CONSORTIUM
The V.I. Department of Education has announced that public schools will reopen on August 8. The department also addressed a recent V.I. Board of Education report that found a wide range of deficiencies at learning facilities on St. Croix.
"Prior to the start of each school year, officials from the Virgin Islands Fire Service and the Virgin Islands Department of Health are invited to conduct rigorous environmental, and life and fire safety inspections of public-school campuses," D.O.E. said.
Victor Somme III, who was made acting commissioner following the resignation of Racquel Berry-Benjamin, said the results of these annual reviews help determine maintenance priorities for the year.
“We are careful to conduct these annual inspections so we can identify and address priority areas as part of our year-round maintenance plan,” Mr. Somme said.
The department said some items from the most recent inspections have been completed, and architectural and engineering consultants have developed packages to address high-priority areas of concern. D.O.E.'s Facilities Division continues to work closely with schools toward completion of all projects, according to a release issued Tuesday night.
D.O.E. said annual environmental, and life and safety inspections for the 2022-2023 school year will begin in mid-July. In June, for the first time, the department conducted extensive safety and security inspections of schools with professionals from the Virgin Islands Fire Service, Virgin Islands Rescue, Virgin Islands Police Department, and EMS to identify potential campus vulnerabilities in the event of an active threat.
“While many of our buildings are aged and have outlived their lifecycle, this does not prohibit us from opening schools on time and providing safe and welcoming environments for students to learn,” Mr. Somme said. “Maintenance is ongoing, and we continue to work closely with the Office of Disaster Recovery, our federal partners, and industry consultants to build new schools or modernize existing buildings. I look forward to welcoming students and staff, and opening schools safely in August.”
According to the V.I. Board of Education report, Some schools were found with code violations which had been previously reported to Dept. of Education officials, such as John H. Woodson Jr. High School, which has no fire extinguisher system, no fire alarm system, and no smoke detectors, according to the report.
"There are areas on the campus where the emergency strobe lights and alarm boxes are hanging by the wires," the report reads in part. The extinguisher in the wood working classroom was expired, and the V.I. Fire Service noted several hazards, including wires hanging from an electrical box, and numerous flammable substances such as solvents and paints left exposed on work tables without supervision.
At the St. Croix Educational Complex, the "entire facility" was found to have leaking pipes, while the male locker rooms and restrooms featured exposed wiring and holes dug into the concrete walls.
Other schools did not have sufficient means of egress which would allow occupants of the buildings to escape during a fire emergency. Faulty alarm systems were also a concern along with fire extinguishers that needed to be serviced and, in some cases, exit signs and emergency lights were found to be either non-functional or non-existent.
Apart from the fire hazards, the report detailed concerns about about safety issues that were discovered. At some schools, intercoms were either missing or non-existent throughout the entire campus. Surveillance cameras have stood non-operational since the 2017 hurricanes. Schools have limited practice drills for active shooter lock downs and earthquakes, among other hazards.
The merger of school campuses in both districts was an issue of significant concern for the Board of Education, which explained that it found "no evidence of a clear plan to address the excessive school fights and school safety.” The report found that the existing security challenges that come with the territory's open campuses are heightened by poorly maintained infrastructure — downed fences, broken doors and gates.
