Sant'Angelo dei Lombardi - Freezing classrooms, inadequate facilities, a lack of safety, and a profound sense of abandonment. This is a snapshot of the conditions in which students at the Sant'Angelo dei Lombardi Language High School have been forced to study for two years, having been relocated to the top floor of a building that formerly housed the INPS offices.
"It's 10 degrees inside, when national regulations set a minimum of 18°C," the students complain. "We spend hours in jackets and scarves. This isn't school, this is resistance."
A sudden move and a plan never actually used
The situation arose two years ago, when a school principal in charge decided to move the linguistic high school to the now contested building.
The upper floor, where the classrooms are now located, was rarely used. It now houses an entire program, while the lower floor—once occupied by a few accounting classes—only the first two-year program remains.
"We're completely disconnected from the other departments at the institute," the students explain. "We're experiencing physical and managerial isolation."
Internal emergency exits, broken windows and freezing air
It's not just the temperatures that are a concern. The building has several critical issues: The emergency stairs are internal, not external, as required by safety regulations. The panic doors malfunction and often jam. The windows don't close properly, allowing cold air to constantly filter in.
A combination that makes the environment "extremely difficult and potentially dangerous", recalling that Sant'Angelo dei Lombardi was one of the municipalities hardest hit by the 1980 earthquake.
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The prevailing feeling is one of abandonment.
"We've been living like this for two years, and no one really stands up for us," they explain. "We even hear that we're the ones who don't want to go to class. The truth is, it's impossible to stay in a classroom for six hours in these conditions."
The paradox, they say, was reached on November 23, the day commemorating the 1980 earthquake: "While they're inviting us to participate in an awareness day, the school is falling to pieces. The technicians claim the structure is up to code, but the reality is there for all to see."
Absent leadership and institutions in difficulty
The school community recognizes the goodwill of the mayor, vice principal, and deputy principal, but regrets that only partial solutions have been provided.
The school principal, the students explain, "is a regent, lives in Naples, and is rarely present. He cannot guarantee constant supervision."
Meanwhile, at the institute's headquarters, the situation is completely different: "It's warm there. Here, it's freezing."
“Come and see. We need someone to listen to us.”
The students are calling for concrete action: "It would be crucial for us to have a story about our school. The media coverage could finally force someone to address the problem."
An appeal that sounds like the last cry for help from a school community that asks only to be able to teach safely — and at a dignified temperature.
Comments (1)
The situation at the school is truly worrying and unacceptable. Students deserve a suitable environment to study, but instead they find themselves in freezing classrooms with unsafe conditions. It's strange that no one is taking serious action.