Southern Italian school infrastructure and service issues

As the new academic year begins in southern Italy, regional school administrations are facing challenges regarding infrastructure and student services.

In Puglia, the Unione degli Studenti (UdS) has issued a formal complaint regarding inadequate school conditions. The association reports that only 4.8% of surveyed school sites have air conditioning or ventilation, leading to extreme temperatures that cause physical and mental fatigue. Furthermore, structural concerns are significant, with approximately 70% of buildings lacking updated occupancy certificates and over 86% lacking seismic vulnerability assessments.

In Calabria, the situation presents a contrast between successful interventions and ongoing service delays. While some municipalities in the province of Reggio Calabria have successfully installed air conditioning in all classrooms to mitigate high temperatures, other areas face mobility issues. In the vicinity of the Valentini-Majorana school, local officials report that bureaucratic delays from the regional administration have stalled requests to expand bus services necessary for student commuting.