A sister roof hole pock-marks the ceiling at C.E. Williams Middle School. Last summer, a steel roof I-beam fell inside a decrepit Springfield Elementary trailer. Had it happened a month earlier or later, it could have crushed a kindergartner. Charleston schools are simply falling apart. Door locks don't work, windows fall out instead of open, lockers don't lock.
Most windows are plastic and opaque.
If it weren't for the cracks between the window frame and the wall, kids at Clark Corporate Academy wouldn't be able to see outside. A classroom at Schroder Middle burned last summer and school officials didn't realize it for days. At Haut Gap Middle School, however, the fire alarm works fine - at random times. It takes a minute to realize what's on the ceiling at Middleton High's gym. Principal David Parlor does not wait for recognition to set in.