Schools

36 of 38 Upper Manhattan Schools Have Deficient Air Systems: Data

Just two public schools in Inwood and Wash Heights have proper air filtration, according to the most recent available building inspections.

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An image of the Duke Ellington school in Washington Heights.
An image of the Duke Ellington school in Washington Heights. (Peggy Bayard/Patch)

UPPER MANHATTAN, NY — Inwood and Washington Heights public schools will open along with those in the rest of New York City on Sept. 10, and there has been increasing debate between city and school employees about whether buildings are equipped with adequate airflow.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday that a team of inspectors would comb over New York City classrooms to ensure that airflow and ventilation systems meet standards to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

That gives the inspectors just two weeks to work their way through thousands of classrooms.

Find out what's happening in Washington Heights-Inwoodfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

However, city inspectors aren't needed to say there are problems with airflow and filtration in Inwood and Washington Heights classrooms.

The information already exists.

Find out what's happening in Washington Heights-Inwoodfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news site, recently created a database that allows people to find the most recent inspection reports publicly available for each New York City school. You can use the database to see if your school has deficiencies in its exhaust fan system, which is supposed to pull stale air out of buildings, or with its supply fan system, which brings fresh air inside.

Dates of the reports range from fall 2018 through summer 2019. The Department of Education conducted another round of inspections this summer, but those results have not been shared publicly.

New York City has raced to repair and upgrade ventilation systems with the Sept. 10 reopening date looming and purchased 10,000 portable air purifiers for schools.

With that said, numerous deficiencies were shown in the information from the most recently shared reports of air systems in Inwood and Washington Heights schools.

Out of the 38 K-12 public schools in the two Upper Manhattan neighborhoods, just two were found to have no deficiencies in both their exhaust fan and supply fan system. Additionally, 18 of the schools didn't have a supply fan system at all.

Here is the air ventilation information for all 38 K-12 public schools in Inwood and Washington Heights, according to the Department of Education. Including each school's most recent building condition report.

Amistad Dual Language School, 4862 Broadway

Castle Bridge School, 560 West 169th Street

City College Academy of the Arts, 4600 Broadway

The College Academy (Part of George Washington Educational Campus), 549 Audubon Ave

Community Health Academy of the Heights, 504 West 158th Street

Community Math & Science Prep, 401 West 164th Street

Dos Puentes Elementary School, 185 Wadsworth Ave

Gregorio Luperon High School for Science and Mathematics, 501 West 165th Street

Harbor Heights, 306 Fort Washington Avenue

Harold O. Levy School, 650 Academy Street

High School For Excellence and Innovation, 650 Academy Street

High School for Health Careers and Sciences (Part of George Washington Educational Campus), 549 Audubon Ave

High School for Law and Public Service (Part of George Washington Educational Campus), 549 Audubon Ave

High School for Media and Communications (Part of George Washington Educational Campus), 549 Audubon Ave

Inwood Early College for Health and Information Technologies, 650 Academy Street

IS 528 Bea Fuller Rodgers School, Wadsworth Ave & 180th Street

JS 143 Eleanor Roosevelt, 511 West 182nd Street

MS 322, 4600 Broadway

MS 319 Maria Teresa, 21 Jumel Place

MS 324 Patria Mirabal, 21 Jumel Place

Muscota, 4862 Broadway

Paula Hedbavny School, 421 West 219th Street

Professor Juan Bosch Public School, 12 Ellwood Street

PS 115 Alexander Humboldt, 586 West 177th Street

PS 128 Audubon, 560 West 169th Street

PS 132 Juan Pablo Duarte, 185 Wadsworth Ave

PS 152 Dyckman Valley, 93 Nagle Ave

PS 173, 306 Fort Washington Ave

PS 18 Park Terrace, 4124 9th Ave

PS 189, 2580 Amsterdam Ave

PS 4 Duke Ellington, 500 West 160th Street

PS 48 P.O. Michael J. Buczek, 4360 Broadway

PS 5 Ellen Lurie, 3703 10th Ave

PS 8 Luis Belliard, 465 West 167th Street

PS 98 Shorac Kappock, 512 West 212th Street

Hudson Cliffs, 349 Cabrini Boulevard

Washington Heights Academy, 202 Sherman Ave

Washington Heights Expeditionary Learning School, 511 West 182nd Street

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