LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Today, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion authored by Supervisor Hilda L. Solis and coauthored by Supervisor Lindsey Horvath to protect vulnerable students from extreme heat on school campuses. 

“The impacts of man-made climate change are already evident. Severe storms, drought, and extreme temperatures have become more frequent occurrences, and hotter, longer heat waves are threatening the health and well-being of our residents,” said Supervisor Solis. “Unfortunately, children are particularly susceptible to heat stress and other heat-related illnesses, and they make up almost half of those getting sick. Due to the nature of their design, many schools are some of the hottest locations in the County. Play yards dominated by asphalt increase heat risk, and the lack of trees on many campuses results in fewer opportunities for cooling shade. It’s clear many schools need to reimagine their campuses to address extreme heat.” 

Studies have shown the serious impacts extreme heat temperatures cause. According to the World Health Organization, children are among one of the most vulnerable groups to these health impacts. Specifically, children with underlying conditions such as asthma, which are more common in our underserved communities due to their proximity to freeways, are at an even higher risk of experiencing severe impacts of extreme heat conditions. As the increase in population exposure to extreme heat continues, children are at risk of serious heat illness symptoms, hospitalizations, and death.  

“As we continue to see extreme heat-related events due to the climate crisis, we need to act to safeguard our children, teachers, and communities to be better protected, especially those living in heat-prone areas like the San Fernando Valley,” said Supervisor Horvath. “We have the opportunity to expand regional cooling centers at school sites and to transform heat-generating asphalt into green space through local, state, and federal programs to cool schools and our communities.” 

Governor Newsom recently allocated $73 million in additional funding from Cal Fire for school districts to replace asphalt with green spaces, trees, and vegetation. Additionally, grants such as the California School Facilities Program and Green Schoolyard Grant program can be incorporated to help reimagine these school campuses. Some school campuses have already been made into cooling centers to combat the extreme heat. However, not all districts have the bandwidth to secure these resources, especially smaller districts in unincorporated areas. 

Solis and Horvath’s motion directs several County departments to convene interested school districts and raise awareness of federal and state funding opportunities to support climate resiliency and cooling at schools – as well as provide technical assistance to school districts in heat-vulnerable areas that are interested in pursuing these funding opportunities. In addition, the motion asks for the creation of a toolkit to provide practices and strategies on how to protect students while a long-term strategy to modernize and cool school campuses.