American Students Riding Escalators to Department Stores for School and Classes

Toxic Substances Detected in Former School Building
Closed Department Store Converted into School Building
"No Soundproofing, Other Class Noises Heard"

A video showing high school students in the United States attending classes by going to a department store building has been released, attracting attention.

On the 21st (local time), the British BBC released a video covering Downtown Burlington High School located in Vermont, USA. The video shows students going to the department store building and taking escalators to move to their classrooms.

Students are moving inside the building using the escalator.
Photo by BBC UK

Inside the building, the school facilities have been remodeled, with clothing stores converted into practice rooms, but brand signs still remain on the walls, leaving traces of the department store.

The reason students are attending school in a department store building is that in 2020, toxic substances were detected in the original school building, leading to its closure.

The building walls still have brand signs remaining.
[Photo by BBC UK]

School officials, looking for a place to hold in-person classes, renovated the Macy's department store in Burlington, which closed in 2018, into school facilities.

The amount spent on remodeling the department store was about 3.5 million dollars (approximately 4.6 billion KRW). After the renovation, the building was equipped with dozens of classrooms, a cafeteria, a library, and sports facilities.

A place that was used as a clothing store has been transformed into a rehearsal room.
[Photo by BBC UK]

Students showed various reactions to attending school in the department store building.

Student representative Geoshi expressed discomfort, saying, "The walls do not reach the ceiling, so there is no soundproofing," and "I hear math class sounds while attending literature class."

Another student representative, Mustafa, said, "There are no windows here," and "We cannot see sunlight."

Some students gave positive feedback, saying, "It is conveniently located downtown," and "The school building is smaller than before, so it is easier to move around."

Meanwhile, Downtown Burlington High School is currently constructing a new building and is scheduled to be completed in 2026.