Shortened Schedule for Complex, CTEC and Central Announced as Teachers Stage ‘Sick-Out’ Amid Concerns Over Classroom Conditions

On Wednesday morning, while students at the St. Croix Educational Complex High School were preparing for the day — including the senior class gearing up for “Babies vs. Boomers Day” — teachers staged an unannounced “sick-out.”

According to the V.I. Education Department, 35 teachers were reported absent, leaving insufficient staff to sustain normal school operations. Parents were asked to pick up their children, buses were provided for transportation, and the V.I. Police Department was on-site following reports of fights outside the campus.

A statement circulating from some teachers described “extreme heat and poor classroom conditions,” with temperatures inside classrooms reaching above 90 degrees and, in some cases, up to 100 degrees. The statement highlighted that the learning environment had become “hazardous, not only hindering education but also threatening the health and well-being of everyone inside.” Both teachers and students were reportedly sweating profusely and suffering from bad headaches, dizziness and fatigue. Despite these dangerous conditions, the teachers said VIDE “has been alarmingly silent.”