Albuquerque Public Schools has more than 500 active cooling system work orders, even after running units all summer to avoid startup issues. Now, district officials are asking voters for $40.2 million in November to upgrade 20 schools to modern air conditioning, though they admit some campuses could still wait years for relief.
John Dufay, APS assistant deputy director of operations, said the district spent a record $13.2 million last year to maintain aging systems—a 47% jump from $9 million the year before. He said inflation and rising parts costs drove much of the increase, along with a shift in approach.
“Instead of staying in band-aid mode, we’re moving to replacement mode,” Dufay said.
As almost 66,000 students return to class, many face the same sweltering conditions that have plagued APS for years. Only 28% of classrooms have reliable refrigerated air, according to district data published in July.
The November General Obligation Bond is the district’s fastest path to tackle what officials call a critical infrastructure need. But the $40.2 million proposal would upgrade only 20 of APS’s 153 schools and facilities, leaving many still dependent on outdated evaporative cooling.
“A number of those schools already have refrigerated air,” Dufay said. “We have the 20, so we’re going to look at probably the next 80 and we’re looking at that to be in the next six to seven years.”
Current Crisis Management
As students return to classes on Thursday, APS maintenance crews are juggling hundreds of active work orders across the district’s more than 20,000 cooling units, with technicians on standby for emergency calls during the critical first weeks of school, according to district officials.
“We probably have a little over 500 work orders right now,” Dufay said. He said the district ran cooling systems all summer to catch problems early and avoid the usual August repair backlog.
To help keep classrooms bearable, APS has deployed “a couple hundred” portable refrigerated units for emergencies, Dufay said. When systems break down, schools move students to cooler areas while repairs or temporary fixes are made.
The stopgap approach highlights the limits of aging evaporative coolers, which were designed for a cooler, drier Albuquerque 50 years ago. At best, they lower indoor temps by about 20 degrees—so when it’s 100 outside, classrooms can still hover around 80 before factoring in body heat from students and staff, according to the district.
The challenges facing APS mirror a broader regional shift away from evaporative cooling. “Around 2019, we started seeing higher temperatures more consistently and noticing that our evaporative coolers just were not cutting it,” said Dufay in a recent interview with The Washington Post.
The impact on students goes beyond discomfort. APS teacher Derek Villanueva told The Post that classroom temperatures near 80 degrees create “flushed, sleepy high-schoolers.” He said, “multiple students at his school showed signs of heat illness and at least two of them fainted” in the past year.
“When the teacher says that it’s in the high 80s, or it’s 80 degrees, or anything like that in the classroom, we’re responding quickly because we don’t want any kid to have that,” Dufay said.
Why Maintenance Costs Exploded
According to Dufay, maintenance costs are climbing in school districts nationwide, and supply shortages are a major reason. He said all HVAC control panels and boards are made overseas, which drives up prices and causes delays.
“Most of the parts — all the control panels and boards — are really expensive, and they all come from overseas,” Dufay said. “The boards are not made here in the US.”
APS also shifted from repeatedly fixing failing cooling units to a full replacement after technicians found themselves returning to fix the same systems multiple times.
“We’re finding out with the band-aid issue, we’d get another call back in a week,” he said. “Being out here two times, three times, it’s the same unit… We’ll save more money by just replacing it this time instead of going back.”
After two or three visits, technicians started pushing for full replacements. “You know what, we’ll save more money by just replacing it this time instead of going back,” he said. “This is the third time I’m coming out there on that call — It’s time to stop that.”
By replacing old equipment instead of patching it, Dufay said, “we’re going to see a decrease in those calls, but also a decrease in the work orders, because the unit and the parts are all new instead of old.”
The November Bond
If voters approve the $40.2 million bond in November, APS will use the funds to install refrigerated air at 20 schools selected for urgency and feasibility, according to bond documents obtained by CityDesk Abq. Project costs range from $900,000 at Kit Carson Elementary to $4.43 million at Desert Ridge Middle School.
The cost differences come down to size and complexity, according to Dufay. “Desert Ridge is a middle school. It’s much larger than Kit Carson. It’s a smaller footprint and fewer classrooms,” he said.
The 20 priority schools include:
Elementary Schools: New Futures ($1.31M), Mary Ann Binford ($1.49M), Barcelona ($1.24M), Reginald Chavez ($860K), Dennis Chavez ($2.01M), Chamiza ($2.09M), Tomasita ($1.43M), Edmund G. Ross ($1.77M), Kit Carson ($900K), Apache ($1.05M), Pajarito ($1.66M), Chaparral ($1.63M), Double Eagle ($1.87M), Hubert Humphrey ($1.41M), and Painted Sky ($2.15M).
Middle Schools: Desert Ridge ($4.43M), Eisenhower ($3.63M), Grant ($3.60M), Washington ($2.79M), and Hayes ($2.89M).
New Futures High School received priority placement due to its daycare facility, which carries special climate control requirements, Dufay said
The $40.2 million for air conditioning is part of a larger $350 million general obligation bond package on the November ballot, according to bond documents.
New Mexico voters have historically backed school bonds, approving 96.8% of measures between 2006 and 2022, according to data from Ballotpedia.org. In November 2024, 66% of voters approved $230 million in higher education bonds, which included several HVAC projects.
But APS faces financial pressure. More than half of the proposed bond—$173.74 million—is set aside to cover cost overruns from previous construction projects, limiting how much can go toward new improvements, the documents show.
Timeline Reality: Years of Work Ahead
Even if Albuquerque voters approve the bond in the election, the timeline to convert will extend well into the future. District officials hope to complete the 20 schools within two years, but equipment availability remains a major bottleneck.
“The availability of the equipment is a big question mark,” Dufay said. “We order now, sometimes they say it’s 12 months, sometimes at least six months. It depends on the availability of the equipment.”
Beyond the 20 schools, APS faces a much longer timeline for systematic cooling improvements. The district estimates that about 80 additional schools need conversion to refrigerated air, with completion projected for about seven years.
Some schools may wait even longer for upgrades. Large, complex campuses like Sandia and Manzano high schools pose the biggest challenges, with conversions potentially costing tens of millions each, according to John Dufay.
“High schools that don’t have refrigerated air now… that have wide open campus buildings—Sandia High School is one example. Manzano is another example,” Dufay said.
School Selection Raises Equity Questions
An analysis of academic performance data shows that many schools slated for air conditioning upgrades rank among the district’s lowest-performing. The pattern raises questions about whether APS is targeting struggling schools or using other criteria to set priorities.
Elementary schools set to receive air conditioning upgrades have lower test scores and attendance rates than those not on the list, according to district data.
On average, those schools posted lower combined English and math proficiency in 2023-24 and had lower daily attendance—89.4% compared to about 91%—in 2024-25. Chronic absenteeism was also worse, with 52.5% of students missing 10% or more of the school year, compared to 46.5% at schools not getting upgrades.
The chronic absenteeism data reveal crisis-level conditions at several schools that are getting air conditioning.
At Barcelona Elementary, where the district plans to spend $1.24 million on conversion, chronic absenteeism jumped from 17% in 2022–23 to 52% in 2024–25. Chaparral Elementary, receiving $1.63 million, has the district’s highest chronic absenteeism rate at 62%—meaning nearly two-thirds of students miss at least 10% of school days.
Six of the seven elementary schools getting air conditioning have combined English and math proficiency rates below 50%, with some scoring in the teens. All seven have chronic absenteeism rates above 48%.
Barcelona Elementary, set to receive $1.24 million for air conditioning, had just 16.7% of students proficient in English and 17.9% in math, with 88.6% attendance. Chamiza Elementary, getting $2.09 million, scored 22.9% in English and 25% in math, also with 88.6% attendance.
Attendance has declined faster at schools receiving upgrades—dropping 1.3% over the past three years—compared to just 0.3% at schools not getting conversions. Apache Elementary, allocated $1.05 million, has the lowest attendance rate at 88.6%.
Meanwhile, several high-performing schools will continue relying on evaporative cooling. Alamosa Elementary, with 78% English proficiency and 93.2% attendance—the highest among schools analyzed—is not included in the bond.
The data suggests APS may be prioritizing equity in its air conditioning rollout, targeting schools with lower test scores, higher absenteeism, and greater need.
Still, at least one outlier complicates that narrative. Dennis Chavez Elementary, set to receive $2.01 million for air conditioning, ranks among the district’s top performers with 69.1% English proficiency and 68.3% in math.
District officials haven’t publicly explained if or how academic data factored into the selection process, instead pointing to technical considerations like building age and conversion feasibility.
For families, the bond offers short-term relief for some schools and a reminder that full districtwide upgrades remain years away. The 20 schools selected for conversion serve thousands of students, while many others continue to face uncertain timelines.
District leaders say refrigerated air is no longer a luxury, citing climate data showing Albuquerque’s heat risk is rising fast. According to climate projections from ClimateCheck, the city had an average of seven days over 97 degrees in 1990, but is projected to hit 45 such days annually by 2050.
The shift mirrors broader regional trends, as The Washington Post reported that Arizona state prisons are phasing out evaporative cooling for air conditioning, and Southern Nevada approved a moratorium on evaporative cooling in new commercial buildings due to water use concerns.
“We recognize that hot classrooms interfere with learning,” the district stated in a Q&A about cooling challenges. “We know we need to provide students and teachers with good learning environments and that, given the steady rise in temperatures in recent years, refrigerated air in our classrooms is a necessity.”