BOE seeks to rid IHS library of mold

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BOE seeks to rid IHS library of mold

By Sykes, Staff Writer Thursday, April 6, 2006 3:13 PM EDT

http://www.localsource.com/articles/2006/04/11/irvington_herald/news/

local/doc44219360cc210898089409.txt

Irvington Herald

IRIVNGTON, NJ - The Irvington Board of Education passed a resolution

last week to finally deal with a moldy, long-standing problem that

has threatened the health and education of students at the high

school.

The resolution calls for the renovation of the high school library,

which has been closed to students and teachers for the last three

years because of the rampant growth of a fungus-like mold. The mold

apparently has spread throughout the library and is so pervasive

that it now threatens other parts of the school, representatives

from the community and the Irvington Education Association said.

The resolution was passed unanimously at the board's regularly

scheduled meeting last week in Mount Vernon Avenue School.

Specifically, it empowers Steel, secretary of the Board of

Education, to begin the process of securing the funding and a firm

to deal with the " mold concentration in the floor of the high school

and the ongoing problem with leaks due to the obsolete skylights. "

" We've been working to address this issue and we will have a state-

of-the-art media center up and running soon, " Steele said. " The

library is on the second floor of the school and has leaky

skylights. We've had contractors and others come in and they've all

come to the conclusion that the skylights have to go. "

The resolution states that the board, upon the recommendation of

interim Superintendent Ethel Davion, will be asking the county

superintendent of the Department of Education to " send a

representative to review the conditions and classify it

an `emergency' situation. " While that was good news to many members

of the audience in attendance at the meeting, members of the

Irvington Education Association and concerned citizens from the

community said this latest move by the board and school

administration is long overdue.

" Students have not had access to the library because of the mold

problem in there for the last three years, " said IEA representative

and IHS teacher Greg Schulman. " The state department of Occupational

and Safety Hazard Administration has deemed it unfit for humans and

they've been fining the district $98 a day for the last two years.

That means it's potentially dangerous to go in there, let alone do

any study or research. "

Schulman said instead of a fully functioning library, students and

teachers have been relegated to a tiny " resource room, " that has a

few computers and other pieces of equipment, but almost no books. He

said during the last three years the school has gone from four

librarians to one, and because the library is on the second floor,

the spreading mold is threatening the walls and ceiling on the first

floor as well as offices and classrooms adjacent to it.

Schulman said that can't be a good sign for education in the

township.

" We've gone to the administration and tried to talk to them about

the problem, but in the past all we got were promises they would

look into it and that they are trying to get funding from the state

to do something about it, " Schulman said. " This district has a $100

million-plus budget. Where is the money going if it's not being used

to address problems like the library? Teachers' salaries and

benefits only account for a fraction of the budget. Where is the

rest of it going? "

That question was on the mind of Harry Paden, a concerned resident,

community activist and candidate for one of the at-large seats up

for grabs in the May 9 Municipal Council election. He was at the

meeting in support of the Irvington Alliance, a slate of three

candidates running to fill the three board seats up for grabs in the

April 18 BOE election. Paden asked Davion and the board about the

problem in the library.

" I understand this could affect the school's accreditation by the

Middle States Schools Association, and that relates to students'

diplomas, " he said. " If the school is not accredited then their

diplomas aren't worth the paper they're printed on. "

Davion said the school is accredited.

" We don't want that misinformation to get out that we are not

accredited, " she said. " We are accredited, which is good for five

years. "