Adding portable classrooms is not the answer, say parents who oppose a plan that would add 15 to Mount Hebron High School as part of needed improvements.
“There are definitely drawbacks to portables, and we?ve come to accept them … but when we go to 15,” more problems come up, said Cindy Ardinger, the leader of Help Mount Hebron, a parent group that lobbies for major renovations to the Ellicott City school.
Portable classrooms are temporary, individual, standalone units.
Mount Hebron parents have said that in portables, teachers feel isolated from the rest of the school and children aren?t as safe in case of an emergency.
Howard has 190 portable classrooms, which school officials say are the best way to deal with fluctuating enrollments.
“It?s not the optimum, but it?s just the reality of life ? we kind of have to live with it,” said Johnnie Nussbaum, president of the Glenelg High School Parent Teacher Student Association.
Common problems with portable classrooms include poorly functioning ventilation systems, mold growth and site pollution from nearby parking lots, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
No major problems have been reported, and maintenance is done as needed, said Ken Roey, executive director of facilities planning and management for Howard public schools.
Trailers that are well-built and regularly maintained can last up to 25 years, said Michele Cunningham, vice president of marketing and business development Williams Scotsman, a modular building supplier based in Baltimore City.
“There is no significant difference in student behavior or achievement when a student is a portable classroom versus a permanent classroom,” she said.
BY THE NUMBERS
» Total portable classroooms: 190
» Schools with the most portable classrooms:
» Bushy Park Elementary: 8
» Pointers Run Elementary: 9
» Glenwood Middle: 8
» Glenelg High: 7
Source: Howard County Schools
