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Manchester Middle School students will attend classes on a split-session schedule at the high school while an environmental firm remediates a mold problem at the middle school.
A mostly-filled auditorium at Manchester Township High School greeted the administration of the Manchester Township School District at 10 a.m. Monday morning, as parents, staff and community members were in attendance to learn about next steps after the recent appearance of mold in Manchester Township Middle School.
Mold Issue at MTMS
The situation began when mold was observed by middle school staff members on the first floor of the building earlier this month, and those staff quickly alerted district officials. The district, in turn, notified two local companies to visit the school and perform a consultation — T.T.I. Environmental Services and Servpro.
The observations of the specialist companies showed that the problem was apparent in more than one area on the first floor of the building.
“Mold was found in several spots on the first floor of the middle school. However, the second floor was able to be isolated through the use of barriers and de-humidifiers, and the mold was prevented from growing on the second floor also,” said Superintendent David Trethaway.
The superintendent said that results were able to be returned quickly after T.T.I. and Servpro did their initial observations and testing two weekends ago, which consisted of a visual inspection by technicians, followed by air quality testing in every classroom, hallway and area in the school building.
Though mold was prevented from growing on the second floor of the middle school, it will still need “intensive cleaning”, according to Trethaway, along with specialized vacuuming and replacement of ceiling tiles, cleaning of the HVAC systems and steam-cleaning all the carpeting.
The work to be done on the first floor is slightly more involved.
“There will be a lot of gutting on the first floor. All the carpeting will be ripped out and replaced with tile,” said Trethaway, who added that a tile surface would also serve as a preventive measure against mold growth in the future, as opposed to carpeting. The floor surface in the gymnasium would also be converted to tile as well, from the prior carpeted surface it had maintained for years.
All ceiling tiles and corkboard strips on the classroom walls will also be removed, as well as chalkboards and cabinets, if deemed necessary.
“If in doubt, it will be thrown out,” said the superintendent.
Timothy Popp of T.T.I. Environmental Services and Michael Reilly from Servpro were also on hand to provide their insight into the mold removal process.
“The first floor will be totally gutted from ceiling to floor,” said Popp. “All services will treated with a HEPA vacuum (a specialized type of vacuum which collects substances even as small as mold particles), wiped down with a detergent solution, and HEPA vacuumed once again.”
As to the causes for the mold’s appearance, Popp couldn’t limit it to any one thing, but noted that a combination of factors such as the age of the carpets, humidity and building conditions could all have played a role.
“Mold can be difficult to see visually, but it was found in cracks and crevices. We don’t know exactly how long it’s been there,” said Popp, in response to an audience question on the subject.
“We don’t just remediate or kill the mold, we remove it,” Reilly described. “Is the process safe? Yes. We use glass cleaner instead of chemical disinfectants, so it does not pose a risk.”
Popp said that a room-by-room visual inspection and air sampling test will be done to deem the rooms complete and habitable at the conclusion of the mold removal process.
Proposed Educational Transition, Cost
Middle school Principal Nancy Driber and Vice Principal Steve Ninivaggi said the solution to the work at the middle school is a split-session schedule, to take place at Manchester Township High School. The high school students would attend classes for the first part of the school day, while the middle school students would attend classes for the second half of the day, from roughly noon to 5 p.m. The announcement brought surprise and protest from parents throughout the auditorium.
Driber stated that the reason that time span was decided upon was that it would allow the middle school students to retain their identical class assignments and teachers. Here is the proposed class schedule under the transition arrangement, as proposed by district administrators:
|
Class Period |
Time Begin |
Time End |
|
4 |
12:10 P.M. |
12:40 P.M. |
|
5 [6th Grade Lunch] |
12:42 P.M. |
1:12 P.M. |
|
6 [7th Grade Lunch] |
1:14 P.M. |
1:17 P.M. |
|
7 [8th Grade Lunch] |
1:46 P.M. |
2:16 P.M. |
|
8 |
2:18 P.M. |
2:48 P.M. |
|
9 |
2:50 P.M. |
3:20 P.M. |
|
1 |
3:22 P.M. |
3:52 P.M. |
|
2 |
3:54 P.M. |
4:24 P.M. |
|
3 |
4:26 P.M. |
4:56 P.M. |
The schedule consists of nine, 30-minute periods — though with block scheduling, both Mathematics and Language Arts periods will span for a total of one hour.
Both Driber and Ninivaggi explained that middle school students will not receive lockers in the high school building (as they’re already in use) and not change for gym class in the high school locker rooms. Additionally, students in each grade level will have their classes in different wings of the building, to keep the students within their own peer groups as much as possible.
Kevin Burger, head of Student & Staff Services, said that he received many questions from working parents as to the choice of before-school child care under this new schedule. He said that several options are being looked at, including at the Y-Building in Toms River, on Whitty Road.
Though the cost of care and responsibility of transportation to the Y in the mornings would fall on parents, Burger said that the district would transport children from the Y to the high school at 11:45 a.m. for their school day, if such an arrangement were reached.
Business Administrator Craig Lorentzen stated that there were no specifics on the cost of the mold removal process yet, as the full scope and length of the project is not yet known.
“There are still a lot of questions unanswered,” he said.
Lorentzen said that the district’s standard insurance carrier only insured for up to $25,000 for mold issues, but that a second, environmental-based policy possessed by the district would cover them for up to $1 million in a situation such as the one it faces.
“If we are unable to pay through insurance, we’ll look at other revenue sources (to obtain the money from), and we’re currently doing that now,” said Lorentzen.
The administrator said that this incident has occurred early in the fiscal year, so not very much money has been spent as of yet — leaving possible funds there to be allocated towards the mold removal cost, if need be.
“Ideally, we’re hoping that it will all be covered through insurance. We don’t know the cost yet, but as more information is available, we’ll get it out to you,” said Lorentzen.
Meeting Reaction
A long question and answer forum followed the presentations, where residents were able to inquire to school and district personnel about their transition plans during the mold removal process.
One asked if the students will retain the same type of abbreviated class schedule after the middle school re-opens — as it turned out, they will revert back to their original school schedule.
Another inquired as to how extracurricular activities would be affected with the shortened school periods that are being proposed.
One parent said that a similar mold outbreak occurred in the past at an elementary school in Barnegat, and the district there was able to coordinate schedules and work together for the good of the children’s education. He said that he was sure Manchester would do just the same.
Yet, some residents expressed apprehension and a lack of enthusiasm regarding the district’s decisions.
“I don’t feel good about it at all,” said Manchester resident Rich Roberts. “I drive to other school districts, and see that they’ve used trailers (as a location for alternate education). I don’t see why they didn’t look into that.”
John Morris of Manchester, who works with heating and air conditioning systems, said that mold is not an uncommon occurrence and that the district is doing what it can to take care of the problem.
“It looks like both parents and students will be inconvenienced, but it’s what has to be done,” he said. Still, Morris felt that the district “sidestepped” some of the issues related to the upcoming transition.
“We are asking everyone to make sacrifices, but we will all find a way to get it done,” Trethaway said.
District officials stated several times throughout the meeting that further information will be distributed to parents through the Manchester Township Schools website and on TV-21, as it becomes available.
The district will hold two meetings Tuesday, at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., for high school parents at the high school auditorium.
In This article
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Manchester Township High School
101 S Colonial Dr, Manchester, NJ -
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Manchester Township Middle School
2759 Ridgeway Rd, Manchester, NJ
Nancy
6:17 pm on Monday, August 20, 2012
I hope that the middle school children will be given books to bring home and keep home and a set will be kept in the classroom. So they do not have to lug books around all day.
jojo
10:46 pm on Monday, August 20, 2012
they are supposed to be keeping the books at the school since they will not have any lockers...
Da Gr8 1
12:12 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
“If we are unable to pay through insurance, we’ll look at other revenue sources (to obtain the money from), and we’re currently doing that now,” said Lorentzen.
looks like our taxes are going up again
this is karma for trethaway and baxter for what they did to ms areman in the whiting school
how in the hell should baxter and trethaway keep thier jobs after this?? this is an absolute disgrace heads should roll
Love Manchester
9:21 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Ms. Areman was a lousy teacher. Get your facts straight!
Jim Hawk
10:31 am on Friday, August 24, 2012
Funny how someone can hide behind the most "powerful" word in Universe and make derogatory statements like this. Ms. Areman was a good teacher and a good person. Having a social network name other than your public name is common on facebook, twitter, and myspace. This is a public forum, where people who have issues or need knowledge about their town can come to get answers. "The greatest deception we suffer from is our own opinions". Keep yours to yourself please. cyber bully tactics don't work here.
Joe Eagle
9:31 pm on Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Funny how Da Gr8 1 is allowed to say derrogatory comments about MR. Baxter and MR.Trethaway, but yet when something is said about her, it is called bullying. I'm sure "Jim Hawk" is your real name just like "Da Gr8 1" is his/hers. You point stinks Jim Hawk.
KC
12:23 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Mold is a problem in many, many schools. It remains largely an unaddressed issue as administrators most often reside in remote air-cooled, clean, modern buildings. Only when health issues become rampant is it generally given some credence. What the article doesn't state is this - It isn't just a problem that "grows" as the article references Mold is airbourne. MOLD CAN KILL! Remediation can be a temporary thing.
Henry
6:31 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Mold is everywhere. In our house carpets, curtains, bathroom ceilings etc. You do not have to see it to know it is there. It is a naturally occurring thing within any environment. When given the "right" conditions it will multiply and present very quickly. I had an issue with my household central air unit and it caused a mold to present on a wall in my home. It was surprising to discover but the repair person said it happens "all the time". I have children in the district and believe that everything is being handled swiftly and by the proper people.
Love Manchester
9:33 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Yay Henry! Love the positiveness!
gogo
8:06 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
if the kids are not getting full days the taxes should drop.Taxes are on a full day i believe.Should send a bunch of teachers home early so you do not have to pay them.
gogo
8:10 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
maybe you can ask the teachers to fore go a rise this year and use the money for the children.Remember its for the kids.Im sure they would night mind.Wonder what kind of insurance company the districk uses hope not the one that toms river used.
Lmb03
8:32 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Would you give up your pay or raise if your job cut your hours because the building caught fire, or had an infestation, or mold? be realistic! This is an unfortunate situation for everyone involved, but hopefully temporary. If it happens that the kids have to do this the whole year, then so be it. When I went to manchester schools we had to do split sessions due to lack of classrooms. It was the only options. Stop complaining about taxes and blaming the teachers pay. This whole situation sucks for everyone, but take pill already.
Patty
2:50 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Your comment is probably the most ridiculous one I've read so far. Like many parents, teachers at the middle school and high school are being inconvenienced by the mold situation. There are several middle school teachers who now have to pay for childcare because they will not be home in time for their own children. As much as teachers do care about their students, they have families too. Don't be ignorant. Teachers did not cause the mold problem and shouldn't have to pay for it to be fixed.
By the way, did you attend school? Your grammar is horrendous!
Lmb03
8:28 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
People need to relax, stuff happens, this wasn't planned for. The board has done the best they can in a short amount of time. It sucks for everyone but placing blame on them for a situation out of their control is not productive. They have insurance but we all know how helpful insurance companies can be. Whatever happens, happens. How about we all woryy about our own kids to make sure they cope well with the transition and stop blaming Trethaway and the teachers like they planned this. Regarding the mold, we were told the type and its benign, common everyday mold found everywhere. People need to relax and do the best they can to cope and pray the situation will be resolved as quickly as possible.
Henry
8:52 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Ageed Lmb03!! Stuff happens people! Myself, many families, staff, students etc. will be greatly inconvenienced. There isn't anyone to blame here.
Patric
9:11 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
The HVAC contract is an issue! Someone should look into this, last year the AIR was down several times. This could have been prevented if they were proactive, but now they are reacting and still not looking at the root cause. This is a bandaid instead of a fix.
megri
6:14 pm on Thursday, August 23, 2012
yes...and I heard they shut the air off on purpose to sane money everyday...
Mark Wendell
12:04 am on Saturday, August 25, 2012
@Patric, yes they were proactive and they did not renew the old companies contract due to numerous call backs and problems with their work and got a new company. Mr. Lorentzen and the bldgs and grounds supervisor (i forgot his name) reported at a board meeting last year that the new company was very busy repairing old issues and they were not being called back for re-do's. The root cause is unknown but it's not the air. The building didn't have air until the referendum and there was no problem before. This is a common problem, mold is everywhere.
Laura Anderson
9:15 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
What I'm wondering is in may/June when the air conditioning was out and they had kids lining the halls to see the nurse and sent 70ish kids home that day,why couldn't they figure it out then that something wasn't right in the school??? I don't believe this happened in a short amount of time, like they are insisting, and believe that our children were sitting in mold for months
Maynard Ferguson
11:13 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Air conditioning removes moisture from the air, it doesn't "cool" the air. When you turn the air conditioner on for four days and off for three days in an effort to pay JCP&L a few dollars less a month, you have created the perfect atmospheric conditions for mold to thrive. Condensation will form everywhere, and mold thrives from all of the condensation.
Now, the township is going to spend more than their insurance policies will cover in remediation expenses. We, the taxpayers, will be burdened with additional tax because the person who decided to shut off air conditioning in the summer to save money obviously never paid attention in science class and just cost us all a bunch of money.
megri
6:15 pm on Thursday, August 23, 2012
WELL SAID
gogo
11:26 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Super should be fired
gogo
11:28 am on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
What kind of cheap insurance do they have
Maureen
3:33 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
I think it's fine to be upset about it because it will inconvenience a lot of people and interfere with a lot of things. I have an especially tricky issue as my daughter's after school activity is contract based. If she misses class I lose money and it takes her longer to acheive her goals. I am going to try to work around it even if it means picking her up early from school and attending weekend make up classes. Things have a way of working out. We just have to be willing to see past the red and realize stuff happens.
Elizabeth
3:56 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
If the mold was in your home, you would do whatever to get rid of it. The township is doing just that. It takes time to have a place safe for our children. Better being safe than sorry......
Concerned Parent
6:04 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Teachers will still be after school at least once a week, and the kids will survive with 8 (not 10) less minutes per class. Those of you who grew up here may remember split sessions before the middle school was built. Somehow those folks still managed to get an education. Honestly you would never know there were so many concerned parents in this town when you're lucky to see ten of them at any given PTA or BOE meeting.
Mark Wendell
10:32 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
@ concerned parent, You are right, everyone will survive. You are also right about the BOE meetings, so few a crowd they can be held in the Ridgeway school and not the High School. If the Board had thrown some bleach over the problem and kept the school open ignoring the problem then everyone would be screaming that they didnt shut the school down and do just this.
Maureen
6:41 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
You always have the option of private school, and hopefully it won't take a full school year to resolve the situation.
Mary
6:44 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Parents that say "Take A chill pill" obviously don't work. In a perfect world we would all have extra money or be a stay at home mother.....I don't have that luxury. To us single mothers that struggle already take this extra hard. Now it will cost an additional $400 a month to place my daughter in before care. In addition I enjoy spending time with my child after school what is she supposed to do come home eat do homework and go to bed so she can wake up at 6am to get ready for daycare.....yeah sorry TAKING A PILL WON'T WORK maybe you should think before making ignorant comments
Mark Wendell
10:22 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Mary, I did splint sessions in the 5th and 6th grade and in a city enviroment and I did it all myself. IMO these kids are old enough to stay home for a few hours and get on a bus. This isnt kindergarden. As for the spending time with your kid, glad you do, this is temporary. Your acting as if you will never get to do it again.
megri
6:19 pm on Thursday, August 23, 2012
I understand they are doing the best they can, I suppose, but you are right, people who make such comments are probably stay at home mothers. Sorry but I have to work too, can barely afford to get food on the table,wish I could sit home too.I feel this will be a lot longer than anticipated
Maureen
6:50 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Who said to take a chill pill? I must have missed that comment. At this point I know *my* middle schooler could get herself ready and on the bus if the need arose. She might need a reminder call from me when it's time to head out, but she is mature enough to handle getting to school. I realize I am fortunate to be home with her and don't have to deal with that aspect of the situation, though.
Maynard Ferguson
9:22 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
http://manchester-nj.patch.com/articles/summer-friday-school-buildings-closings-a-money-saving-effort
Perhaps the $30,000 they saved can be put to use for the two million this money saving effort will cost for remediation.
Perhaps they can invest in some of these to control the HVAC in the schools instead of thermostats, which have nothing to do with controlling moisture.
http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5007855_a-humidistat-work.html
Maynard Ferguson
9:36 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
http://www.buildingscience.com/documents/reports/rr-9302-humidity-control-in-the-humid-south
Perhaps the people involved in this whole project can look at this report on humidity and mold growth and condensation problems that exacerbate mold growth. Then perhaps they will figure out that you can't run the AC for four days and shut it off for three. It creates clouds which make rain, and the water feeds the mold.
Mark Wendell
10:16 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
This building DID NOT have an air conditioning system for most of it's life. It was not installed until the addition was built. It did not have the mold problem when it had no aircon. Whiting ES also had no aircon until the senor devolopment was built next door and that building has not had an issue. I think the BOE did the best they could for something they did not know was going to happen. The idea of trailers for 700 kids is laughable. Splitting grades up into the elementry schools also would not work since teachers teach accross grade levels. This is a temporary thing and maybe the school will come out better for it. Getting rid of the carpets is a great start not only for the mold but the toxic stuff they spew, dirt and dust they hold and the allergies they cause. As for the unit breaking it happens all the time, machines break and as it gets older it will only happen more.
KF
11:09 pm on Tuesday, August 21, 2012
The situation stinks and very inconveient for both parents and children but thank goodness it was found prior to school starting. The thought of dozens of kids getting seriously ill from mold inhilation is very scary. Imagine if we all assumed that it was a flu strain and not diagnosed properly. This really could have been a catastophic situation. I for one am glad that our school officials are putting safety of our children first.
Dani D
2:06 am on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
OK wait, I'm confused here. Was the air turned "off" for the weekend in the hopes of saving money or did the school "lose power" for three days due to a bad storm the end of July?
Mark Wendell
3:58 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
The Board has been talking for at least 2 years now about the energy savings plan.The air goes off on Thursday and comes back on Monday. The maintenance personal work Monday - Thursday with Fridays off. They work 2 extra hours on those days to make up for Friday, 10 hour days. I was told by one of the middle school maintenance guys now stationed at the HS (and other schools in the district) that there were several problems with the unit this year including a burned out electrical part due to a voltage spike and a wire that a animal chewed through.
Mark Wendell
4:04 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
@Dani D, just so you know the info I got about the energy plan was from the handout and verbal info from the BOE itself during the meeting about the cutbacks to the educational and sports programs held in the MS cafe. It also included other energy savings ideas, the same kind of common sense things one would do in their home like turning off lights etc.
Dani D
4:42 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
@ Mark Wendell, thank you for clearing that up for me because Mr. Trethaway has now told 2 lies. He said at the 6 pm meeting that the school "lost power for three days due to a bad storm" When I personally told him I didn't lose power for three days ever his reply was, "well your lucky". Now at the initial MS orientation he told us the mold was contained to the first floor only the second was fine. Now he says it's not fine and there is some contamination there.
If he lies like this I'm truly worried about the kids going back into the building when they say this is complete.
Mark Wendell
6:00 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
@ Dani D, Remember the electrical outage problem could have very well knocked out the system for 3 days, I don't know if that was the case but I was told the problem they had was a voltage spike. Maybe someone from Richard Estates could tell us that's right next door. As for the upstairs I am familiar with mold problems from prior dealings with it. The mold spores can be upstairs and not bloomed or still in the air. They can also be inside a wall, under tile or carpet or in an air duct. The man from Servpro did talk about some of this in the meeting. It may look clear on Monday and be a mess on Tuesday. They did say that they sealed off the upstairs and had machines installed to try to stop the spread of it. If you drive by the building like I did you can see windows were removed and vents were hanging out of the windows. It looks like they tried to stop it and if it got up there that's too bad that it did because that will mean more time and a longer shutdown. I saw in the lobby some kind of green canisters stacked up inside the area in front of the main office. This was last week I saw the vents and canisters so it looks like they are trying to solve this. Mold is very very hard to control I hope for the best in this school. Someone yelled at the meeting, "hadn't they heard of bleach?" was the comment shouted. Mold has little roots that go into cracks in whatever its on and bleach will kill the plant on the outside but the root re sprouts The control for mold is very hard
Thomas McGuire
9:02 am on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Did anyone see the mayor at a meeting? Or was it not his people.
Dani D
4:37 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
No he said in another article he had a previous engagement that was already booked. Really all day and all night?
Maynard Ferguson
11:40 am on Thursday, August 23, 2012
He's hangin with Snooki and JWoWW!
Melosgirl
11:30 am on Friday, August 24, 2012
Brilliant, Mr. McGuire. Right on point.
Mark Wendell
3:59 pm on Wednesday, August 22, 2012
@ Thomas, HaHaHa does that question even have to be asked!!
nella
10:38 am on Thursday, August 23, 2012
ALot of hanging around before and after school for both middle school and high school going to see alot more drug use and girls getting Pregnant or kids getting high before school. Bad thing thats happening for our township. Also what about after school sports ..high school sports students will be there when middle school comes in ... high school students always stay for sports we all know that. It's a big MESS! I'm a parent and this is such a crazy idea to send these young children to the high school...
Mark Wendell
12:12 am on Saturday, August 25, 2012
WOW! now they have the mold causing drug abuse and teen pregnancies! I wonder if the thousands of district's that have these grades together have this info. (Like Manchester did before the Middle school was built and it was than Manchester JR SR High School 1976-1983)
PLP
2:12 pm on Saturday, August 25, 2012
So now the school is responsible for parenting my children? This is an unfortunate situation with the mold, however it is a temporary one. Behaved students are not going to wake up and say "hey, I have an extra hour and half a day, why don't I start taking drugs and get pregnant."
By the time our children reach Middle and High School, they have a pretty good idea of the direction that they want to go in. Some do lose their way and hopefully recover even stronger for it. Split sessions is not going to create a tone of depraved indifference for ones own well being.
PLP
2:17 pm on Saturday, August 25, 2012
And, yes Mark, LOL...we will have to search those statistics. Who knew there was a correlation?
Mark Wendell
8:51 pm on Saturday, August 25, 2012
@ PLP, Yes, who knew, but now we are "informed".
megri
1:09 pm on Saturday, August 25, 2012
yes,Mark Wendell, I believe the person who made that comment was way overboard.That was unneccessary,what are we saying about our children, theirs included!
Mark Wendell
8:53 pm on Saturday, August 25, 2012
@megri, Your right, PLP said it pretty good a few post's above.
Thomas McGuire
7:40 am on Friday, August 31, 2012
Honestly I can’t believe that the mold just cropped all of the up sudden. If the building was flooded maybe. But regardless, it’s a problem now let’s deal with it. My biggest concern is that it gets done as fast as possible. It’s a difficult situation. Let’s all stay on top of it and do everything we can. It’s been some 20 days already, ¼ of the cleanup estimate. Time waits for no mold.
NYTEWYND
3:53 am on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE BIDDING ON THE PROJECT.IS IT NOT PROTOCOL TO TAKE BIDS? I ALSO HEARD THE SCHOOL BUSES HAVE MOLD AND THAT WLL NOT BE ADRESSED.MAYBE PATCH SHOULD CHECK INTO THESE TWO ISSUES
Mark Wendell
3:55 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Every one wants this done yesterday and you want to take 4 months and go out to bid. Also it may be set up through the insurance company and the school system may have nothing to do with who is there. Just like your car insurance company has a list of places for you to go to. At what point in time did someone say anything about the buses? At any rate mold is every where, in the air inside and outside, one of the most common plants in the world. Take samples of the air in your house it will come up with a number.
megri
8:16 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
I am just wondering,it was said there would be weekly updates as to how the cleanup is going, I have looked on school website and here, and there are no updates.Anyone know how it is going?and another thing, my daughter has homec and apparantly they will not be cooking???only taking notes,etc. everyday.what fun is that?she was looking forward to cooking or sewing,etc.just another way the children are getting jipped because of this issue!
Mark Wendell
8:38 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
@Megri, I saw your comment in an e-mail but when I click to it I don't see it here so maybe this will be out of place. I can only see from driving by the school itself. There has been a fleet of bright green trucks and several filled up and already removed dumpsters. Furniture and supplies have been removed from the school in massive piles. Again this is what I can see driving by, it looks like there is a full on effort to get it done. The school is fenced off so driving by is the only way to see anything. When the problem was first announced you were able to see vents coming out of the windows in days, this was explained as a negative pressure thing by Servepro to keep the upper floors safe. As for the home ec thing did you call the school yourself to find out or did your daughter tell you? Maybe she is mistaken and maybe the school can give an answer that makes sense to you and your daughter. Also remember the day and periods are somewhat shorted and maybe there is not enough time if class time, cooking time and clean up time are all included. They are also sharing rooms that "belong" to other teachers and that in itself can be a real hard thing. I hope your daughter enjoys the class when she does get to take it back at the school, life skills are so important. I wish they still got wood shop class also it's very sad to see a empty space were the room was.
megri
9:15 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Thank you for your reply,Mark.Yes,my daughter did tell me, I ask her everyday for the rundown of her classes.Unfortunately homec is a rotation, so it will be a lost cause,the school won't be ready by the time rotation ends.Its ok,though. I will be questioning during my conference, I have never missed a parent conference (:.Also, I myself drive past the school on my way to and from work daily.I understand there is so much work to do.
Mark Wendell
9:45 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
@ Megri, Yes they are on rotation, I hope she can get something out of the limited class. It is a tough situation. I hate to see a kid not get schooling she really wants. I'm glad to talk to someone who does go to the schools to keep up with the kids. I work in another local district and the difference in parent participation between it and Manchester is amazing. You can not get a seat half the time in Manchester it is so crowded. All in all I personally think the work done here in Manchester is very good. I know this is tough but from what I hear the kids are handling it very well.