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Hundreds of homes, thousands of students, millions of allergens
kira herron photo illustration
With 1200 students, the school is a vacuum for millions of allergens from 1200 different homes. The air quality and mold have been topics of concern after teacher complaints about an increase in allergies.
Spanish teacher Terri Dessauer has had allergy symptoms since the second week of school, including hives, nasal congestion, wheezing and her ears have closed off. After being in her classroom for the past five years, this is the first year she has had this number of symptoms.
“I swear it’s this room. I can go home and feel 100 percent better. I felt good, until I walked into here; and I have to stay in this room all day. “For each symptom, I get a new one,” Dessauer said.
Dessauer voiced her concerns to principal Doug Wheeler.
“First I had the custodians clean the dust out of the 43 year old vents (at area of concern). I called in the district when I realized it was beyond our ability,” Wheeler said.
Chief operations officer Bill Good was notified about staff reactions and concerns.
“Whenever we receive a concern about air quality within a building we take it very seriously and investigate potential causes. Providing the best air quality to our schools is a priority. All of our schools meet ventilation requirements,” Good said.
An air quality test was performed to find the root of the concerns. Different types of mold, humidity and carbon dioxide levels were tested. The tests were done twice to compare results.
“We found one area which had some mold growth that we have taken care of. The samples taken in and outside the building would indicate that the air inside the building was better than the outside,” Good said.
The results stated that the hallway outside of Dessauer’s room was at or around the minimum threshold of being detected for mold.
“So the administration is saying it’s not in my room, but it’s less than 20 feet away,” Dessauer said.
Dessauer also said that 13 colonies of mold were found in a service locker.
“I want to know all 13 of these colonies and I want to be tested for all thirteen of them because I want them to know that it’s not all in my head. I wasn’t bothered by allergies for the past 10 years. If I continue wheezing, I am seeing an allergist,” Dessauer said.
Wheeler said that the mold detected in the service locker cannot spread because it has been isolated and will be removed. The test also showed an increase in humidity levels due to a pipe leak in the girl’s restroom outside of room 101. Both areas will be treated and retested.
“The findings were safe for students and staff,” Wheeler said.
The tests were done at and around areas of concern, not the whole school.
“That’s not a reasonable test. The whole school should be done. The drop ceilings too, someone needs to get up there,” Dessauer said.
Good feels that sample testing is necessary for financial reasons.
“Testing every part of every school would not be a good use of our dollars. Testing can be very costly and to do tests where we don’t have issues would not make sense,” Good said.
Wheeler concentrated on the areas that the complaints were coming from.
“I also asked them to test other areas including the auditorium and second floor. We just want to make sure everything is safe,” Wheeler said.
And since it has been a wet year, there is mold growing on leaves outside of the building, which can also cause symptoms of mold allergies.
“A mold allergy can do permanent damage to the lungs. Luckily, we don’t have an unsafe level of mold. We’re safer inside than outside,” Wheeler said, “The environment is so important with what we do.”
Good feels that any type of airborne contaminant can impact individuals differently.
“As humans we are all different. We react differently to many things from temperatures, what may be in the air, food allergies, or other environmental conditions we encounter every day. We need to recognize that and do what we can to improve our quality of life,” Good said.