APS upgrades air conditioning at 20 schools before classes return

Albuquerque Public Schools has put $40 million into air-conditioning work at 20 schools, with seven campuses already finished or under construction and eight more still in design as summer heat presses toward the start of classes. La Cueva High School is among the sites slated for a new heating and cooling system, but some of the work will not be finished before students return because the equipment needed for full replacements often takes a year or more to arrive.

The cooling push is part of the $350 million bond measure voters approved in the Nov. 4, 2025 election. The district's bond request would convert 20 schools from evaporative cooling to refrigerated air without raising taxes, while also funding construction projects at 13 schools, a new career and technical education training facility and a west-side special education facility.

Antonio Gonzales, APS deputy superintendent of operations, said the district is trying to balance day-to-day maintenance with capital improvements and that summer is one of its busiest stretches. The operations team is handling 11,000 work orders this summer after handling 38,000 last school year, while also supporting 70 occupied schools that are still hosting summer programs. The district doubled the number of schools offering summer school and community programming this year.

About 72% of APS school square footage is cooled with evaporative coolers, and the district previously estimated that converting all learning spaces to refrigerated air would cost about $165 million to $175 million and take several years. Hotter temperatures and higher humidity have made evaporative cooling less effective in recent years, especially in August and September, when students are back in school.

The Albuquerque Teachers Federation collected more than 100 anonymous testimonials from educators about hot classrooms.