Junior Finn Chaney grabs a water bottle at a morning football practice at Westwood High School in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 2, 2025.
Junior Finn Chaney grabs a water bottle at a morning football practice at Westwood High School in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 2, 2025.
Noah Devereaux for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Series

How Schools Are Tackling Heat Illness

Student-athletes have always had to balance athletic and academic schedules and navigate mental health challenges. But now there is a growing concern of heat illness as many states are experiencing extremely hot summers and warmer falls. There were 67 deaths because of heat stroke between July 1982 and June 2022, according to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research database.

Education Week looked at states across the nation to see how they’re preventing heat illness. For example, we looked at Georgia, a state that went from having the most heat-related deaths of student-athletes to becoming a leader on heat safety policy. We also developed a guide—based on information from leaders in heat research—to help coaches and athletic directors recognize the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

Stories

Football players gather around a coach during practice at Heard County High School in Franklin, Ga., on Aug. 27, 2025.
‘We Can Save Other Athletes’: How One State Is Fighting Heat-Related Deaths
The state has encouraged schools to modify their practices and monitoring during tough conditions.
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Senior Joaquin Garcia takes a drink of water on the sideline during a morning football practice at Westwood High School in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 2, 2025.
Heat Illness Is Preventable Even on a Budget, Experts Say
Building awareness of risk is a critically important strategy for under-resourced school districts.
Read More

Videos

The Top Priority for This District’s First Female Athletic Director
Protecting student-athletes from heat-related injuries and illnesses is the top priority for this district's first female athletic director.
Watch Video
Heat Safety: How This High School Marching Band Stays Cool
Summer heat and rising temperatures present a risk to the musicians in the high school marching band.
Watch Video
One Small Change Helped This Football Team Prevent Heat Injuries
Dehydration and heat stroke are serious concerns for high schools and their athletics programs.
Watch Video

Downloadable

Junior Ryan Edson takes a drink of water during a morning football practice at Westwood High School in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 2, 2025.
Student Safety: Everything You Need to Know About Heat Stroke
As summer heat waves stretch later into fall—and with higher temperatures arriving earlier in spring—protecting student-athletes from heat-related illnesses has become a year-round concern.
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Project Leads: Sandra Stevenson, Jaclyn Borowski

Designers and videographers: Kaylee Domzalski, CJ Riculan, Yi-Jo Shen, Laura Baker, Vanessa Solis, Gina Tomko

Reporter: Jennifer Vilcarino