As Houston students returned to class after a harsh winter freeze, several Houston ISD campuses, including Wheatley High School—a school previously involved in the Texas Education Agency’s district takeover—faced heating issues. Families told Click2Houston that ongoing HVAC problems made classrooms uncomfortably cold, disrupting learning and making it difficult for students to focus.
Several Houston ISD schools, including Wheatley High and Hamilton Middle, faced ongoing heating problems that made classrooms uncomfortably cold, affecting students’ ability to focus. Ariatnne Castillo described her experience to ABC13: "It was really cold. I could not feel my feet, and since we were on the second floor with the auditorium, I had to go to the third floor, and when I was going up there, my legs felt wobbly."
The issues persist despite HISD’s efforts and come after a $4.4 billion bond for facility upgrades, including HVAC improvements, failed in 2024. Families were notified, students were moved to warmer areas when possible, and maintenance teams worked to resolve the malfunctions, with some campuses reporting interior temperatures as low as 47 degrees.
