Kensington High students to start year at temporary school amid asbestos concerns

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- More than 400 Kensington High School students will begin the school year at a temporary campus in Northeast Philadelphia after asbestos concerns at their school forced a relocation ahead of the first day of classes.

The move comes as crews install a new HVAC system at Kensington High School.

According to the School District of Philadelphia, part of the demolition work led to an asbestos concern, prompting the temporary closure of the building.

Although signs identify the temporary site as Kensington High School, students will attend classes at the former Austin Meehan Middle School, which has been closed since 2022 and is now used by the district as a flex space. Students who would normally attend school in Kensington will instead travel to the Northeast Philadelphia location. For many parents, the relocation has raised concerns.

John Aponte said the change is particularly concerning for his family.

"My son is on the spectrum," Aponte said, explaining that bus service can often be unreliable and late. Now the added element of a different school could cause even longer trips, he said.

"They're gonna be on that bus for at least I'm estimating an hour to two and a half hours."

The School District of Philadelphia said it has organized a system of buses and shuttles to transport students to the temporary campus. Families recently toured the site and received information about the transition.

Kensington High School Principal José Lebrón said safety was the primary factor in the decision to relocate.

"After we found out about this problem, the decision was that Austin Meehan, as far as it may be, is the safest, most secure, clean environment for our kids to be at," Lebrón said to a room full of parents and students who came to visit the temporary school location on Friday afternoon.

Some parents remain unconvinced that the temporary site is the best option.

"I don't know about this school for my grandson," said Neysa Fuentes Osorio, adding that she didn't think the school had been cleaned and organized thoroughly.

Several parents also expressed frustration with the timing of the announcement, saying they learned about the relocation only last week.

"They should have actually made preparations back in July so the parents could get everything situated," David Oney Jr. said.

District officials said students are expected to remain at the temporary location until January while work continues at Kensington High School.

"We're going to ensure that we improve Kensington High School so that when you come back in January, it's going to be the school that you deserve," said Oz Hill, Deputy Superintendent of Operations for the School District of Philadelphia.

The district said it considered other schools closer to Kensington High School but determined they did not meet the space or accessibility needs of students.