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Monday, November 14, 2011

Students Return to School After Lengthy Mold Remediation

High school students are finally back home.

The high school on Kennedy Way reopened Monday after being closed since Sept. 12 for mold remediation.

"It can't be stated enough how wonderful the students were through the whole process," Superintendent Ronald Taylor said at Monday's school board meeting. "This is not the easiest thing to get through. The students were fantastic."

Students missed one week of school and then attended the Levitt School on Salem Road, which was used as a middle school last school year.

Students were pleased as they left the building on a sunny and unseasonably warm day.

"I was happy to be back at the high school. It's remodeled and pretty. I like it," 12th-grader Jeane Savage said.

Sophomore Tanjela McClam said the students really didn't get to enjoy the renovations done last summer because they attended classes for only two days before the shutdown.

"We got new books, and we're finally able to enjoy (the renovations)," McClam said.

As part of a $67.4 million bond referendum, the high school auditorium was renovated, new doors and windows were installed, and new science laboratories were added.

McClam was unhappy about one aspect of returning — the Levitt school was closer to her home.

Savage said she would have to get used to going back to full days. For weeks, students attended split sessions at Levitt.

"Being back to full days, it's kind of crazy," she said.

Several students were thrilled to not be in such tight quarters any longer.

"I think it's better we have more space," freshman Imani Kirby said. "We're not cramped in one space."

Eleventh-grader Brandon Reed said he was pleased that the sports teams would get back their "home-field advantage."

Senior Sean Grimes said the return to school was a smooth one.

"Before, we were stuck in one hallway," Grimes said. "I'm happy to be back."

"Our children are home," resident Kim Davis said at Monday's meeting. "It was a hardship, and everyone made do. We weathered the storm."

Last week, an environmental consultant hired by the district released a report that said the high school is safe for occupancy. The remediation costs are expected to run as high as $700,000, officials have said.

The report said that in some areas of the school, air quality tests in September revealed that mold spores were up to 400 times the amount found outside.

Exposure to mold can cause irritation of the eyes, skin, nose, throat and lungs, as well as allergic reactions.

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