Teachers, students and alumni say Penn Wood High's aging facilities hamper learning; district seeks capital funding

Teachers, students, parents and alumni described deteriorating conditions at Penn Wood High School, saying aging classrooms, broken heating and cooling systems and cramped instructional space are undermining instruction and student morale.

A staff member said, "My room is pretty much the same as it was when I started here um about 20 years ago," and added that some music classes required students to be "on top of each other" because rooms are too small. "In total, I have somewhere just south of 150 students, but most of them are uh packed into just two periods," the staff member said, calling out scheduling and capacity strain.

The concerns ranged from basic infrastructure to instructional setbacks. A speaker who toured the school said the locker rooms and weight room were in poor condition, noting the smell in the locker room and that the weight room "is not a weight room that is conducive for our students." Speakers described frequent heating breakdowns and an absence of air conditioning in warm months, with one student saying hallways and classrooms could be "freezing" or "burning up," creating inconsistent learning conditions.

Several speakers pointed to districtwide needs. "Our buildings are collapsing. Our buildings are degrading. We have 10 buildings throughout the school district that are at least 40 years out of date," one speaker said, framing the problems as systemic rather than limited to a single classroom. Educators also cited instructional gaps: an AP biology instructor said a sink behind the classroom "cannot even utilize our sink for what it's actually meant for," limiting lab work, and others said students lack the technology exposure available at neighboring schools.

Alumni recalled small, piecemeal updates in past decades rather than full-scale renovation. "We always felt almost like we were getting third generation hand-me-downs," an alumnus from the class of 1987 said, arguing the facility never received a comprehensive renewal.

District representation acknowledged the constraints and described a plan contingent on funding. A district official said the current building does not suit a 9-12 configuration and that the district has a plan to expand the footprint and begin work "if we get the dollar amount for the project that is required." The official also cited the long-running fair funding lawsuit, saying the court had concluded the state underfunded many districts, including William Penn School District, and that the district is working with the state legislature and seeking additional community, grant and philanthropic support.

Why it matters: speakers said facilities affect recruitment and retention of staff, the breadth of course offerings and student confidence. They pointed to recent academic successes as evidence of what students can achieve and said renovated space could broaden opportunities.

Next steps: district officials said they are pursuing state capital dollars and community funding to start a renovation but identified funding as the primary obstacle. The transcript contains no record of a formal vote or final funding commitment.