Parents, staff ask district to close middle school after mold is found

<p>School officials say students can request to attend a different school within the district, but that transfer must be approved by the superintendent.</p>

News 12 Staff

Sep 26, 2018, 11:23 PM

Updated 2,031 days ago

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More than 100 parents, staff and community members who attended a school board meeting Tuesday night called on Connetquot School District to close its middle school after mold was found in the building.
District officials have said that hot, humid weather and excess moisture accumulated in nine classrooms, two hallways, two stairwells and in the cafeteria at Oakdale-Bohemia Middle School.
Student Renee Dieso, 12, told News 12 that her fellow students are being affected by the mold.
“I see a lot of kids coughing in the hallways, just hacking. It's bad,” she said.
Renee's mother, Theresa, said her daughter is complaining of headaches and stomach pains. She took her to an allergist Wednesday.
“I'm extremely worried about my daughter,” said Theresa Dieso. “Especially after finding out today that now she has a slight case of asthma. Where did that come from? It had to come from the school.”
A day after the school board meeting, the district issued a statement saying, “The board will continue discussions on remediation of the building and the administration has been tasked with creating plans to redistribute students, if the board were to decide to close the school."
Some parents say they are not going to wait until the administration decides on whether to shutter the school.
School officials say students can request to attend a different school within the district, but that transfer must be approved by the superintendent.


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