MCPS fails to address G87 mold concerns

 Story by Gavin Tribble of the Walter Johnson Pitch newspaper reprinted in The Sentinel. Full story here.

After every class period when students rush through the hallways, ceramics teacher Kimberly Venesky wipes water off her cabinets in G87. The water coats her cabinets, running down the front, settling atop cabinet doors and pooling on the floor.

“Just people washing their hands and splashing or whatever, water is running down the stainless steel [countertop] and down towards the front,” Venesky said. “It’s sitting on top of the [cabinet] door, so when you open the door water is falling onto the floor.”

This has caused the cabinets, which are new, having to be replaced over the summer, to start deteriorating. Parts of the cabinet have begun to buckle under repeated contact with water and the door has started to split apart.

These cabinets have had issues long before they were replaced, having leaked for several years until, finally on March 13, 2024, a Work Order Request was filed to replace the counters. A day later, plumbers reported suspected mold, requesting an Indoor Air Quality investigation in a second work Order Request.

The Indoor Air Quality investigation was completed on March 18, 2024, finding a decayed root structure on a piece of rubble in the cabinet. It is also unclear if mold was properly checked for, as the cabinets were not removed, so the wall behind was not assessed, where Venesky argues the mold was located.

While the Indoor Air Quality investigation was complete, the cabinets were not replaced.

Eventually on June 18, over a year after the request was first filed, new cabinets were installed. However, it was unclear what happened when they put the new counters in.

“I don’t know how they addressed the mold, whether or not they just put the cabinets on top of it, wiped it down, whether it’s actually up to code, and that’s my concern right now, that it’s just going to come back,” Venesky said.

Mold and Maintenance Issues at Sherwood H.S. Spur Parent Petition

With more than 576 signatures, parent Claudia Delgado is pushing for change and calling attention to the mold, aging plumbing, malfunctioning HVAC system, sewage issues, leaks, broken tiles, poor ventilation and asbestos concerns at Montgomery County’s Sherwood High School, where her daughter studies. 

“My daughter spends her mornings in a moldy classroom and often suffers from a ‘cold.’ These conditions do not create a healthy, safe, or positive environment for learning,” Delgado wrote on the petition page, urging action to address the problems.

In recent years, a growing amount of students, staff, and parents have raised concerns about the mold and poor air quality in the school building, located at 300 Olney-Sandy Spring Road. 

It is a visible, documented problem

A report commissioned in October 2023 by fine arts teacher Hailey Mitkoff identified several species of mold in damp areas and noted long-standing water damage. The report recommended “prompt remediation” and “elimination of moisture sources,” according to a story in the Sherwood student newspaper, The Warrior Online...

https://www.mymcmedia.org/mold-and-maintenance-issues-at-sherwood-h-s-spur-parent-petition/

Mold in Montgomery County school draws staff complaints, parent petition

In September, Hailey Mitkoff, a teacher at Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, experienced such extreme chest pain and shortness of breath that she had to go to the hospital. She said that she had observed mold in her classroom before, and that her doctor suspected a link. Mitkoff took an allergy test that confirmed she was allergic to some molds, she said.

She submitted a complaint to Montgomery County Public Schools that detailed her hospitalization and the allergy test. It was one of several complaints reviewed by The Washington Post that staff at Sherwood have sent to head administrators, requesting remediation for what they describe as a potent mold problem. Some parents from the school have also assembled a petition requesting Montgomery County schools to conduct “urgent repairs and mold remediation.”..

https://wapo.st/48Ckwix

Council Public Hearing on $3.8M for HVAC/Mold Remediation in MCPS. Deadline to sign up to speak is December 1st at 2 PM.

The County Council will hold a public hearing on Dec. 2, 2025 at 1:30 p.m. 

The hearing will allow the public to speak to the $3.8M in Healthy Schools funding from the State of Maryland. 

Deadline to sign up to speak is Dec. 1 at 2 p.m. (Link to sign up page)

• Resolution to approve an Amendment to the FY25-30 Capital Improvements Program and Supplemental Appropriation #26-34 to the FY26 Capital Budget, Montgomery County Public Schools, Healthy Schools MCPS (No. 652504), $3,814,685 (Source of Funds: State Aid)

https://montgomerycountymd.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=169&clip_id=18402&meta_id=207523

Petition: End The Neglect of Sherwood High School

 

The Issue

Sherwood High School is plagued by hazards that jeopardize the health and well-being of everyone within its walls due to years of neglect by the county. 

Persistent mold, aging plumbing, malfunctioning HVAC system, sewage issues, leaks, broken tiles, bad ventilation, and asbestos are not just inconveniences—they are contributing factors to illnesses that have impacted students, teachers and staff for years. The deterioration of the school's infrastructure is undeniable, especially considering that certain parts of the building have not been improved since the 1950s.  It is unconscionable for our children and their teachers to spend their days in an environment that poses significant health risks.

Teachers, students and staff at Sherwood High School experience respiratory illnesses while in the building. In fact, twenty-eight IAQ complaint forms were submitted to MCPS last week alone.  A high number of teachers and staff past and present received a cancer diagnosis which has created fear in our community.  Everyone in the lower level of the building endures moldy and sewage smells on a daily basis. Students deal with drastic temperature fluctuations while switching to and from areas of the school that are either unbearably hot or too cold. There is visible mold growing in areas of the school and teachers are equipped with spray bottles that contain bleach because they constantly wipe mold from furniture and teaching materials.  Bathrooms are frequently "out of order".  My daughter spends her morning in a moldy classroom and suffers from a "cold” often. These conditions do not create a healthy, safe and positive environment for learning. 

 Read what some teachers endure: 

https://www.change.org/p/end-the-neglect-of-sherwood-high-school?source_location=search

Students forced out of Montgomery County high school by water main break

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (7News) — A water main break forced students at Quince Orchard High School in Montgomery County to leave the main building on Friday.

"We have evacuated the main building due to a water main break impacting building systems. (Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service) is on site assessing the situation. Students are safe and are being supervised in the Cougar Dome," the school said in a message to parents.

The school did not say what caused the break or how long repairs might take...

https://wjla.com/news/local/students-forced-out-of-montgomery-county-high-school-by-water-main-break-quince-orchard-high-school-evacuation

“Respectfully, it looks really elitist to have the Board of Ed move out, to have all of a lot of the leaders … of MCPS, move out of Carver and to leave everyone else there knowing that that building is unhealthy,” Morrison said.

...Many schools have also faced concerns about building conditions, including A. Mario Loiederman Middle in Silver Spring, which advocated for a new HVAC system in May. At the time, staff said the school dealt with inside temperatures reaching as low as 40 degrees and as high as 90 degrees, odd smells, mold throughout the building and moisture collecting on floors and desks...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/2025/09/12/mcps-deep-clean-of-carver-education-center-to-start-monday-after-complaints/

Some Montgomery County schools have mold as 'chewing gum and duct tape' hold together HVAC systems

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Some Montgomery County public schools have grown mold over the summer due to high humidity and suboptimal HVAC systems, MCPS Superintendent Thomas Taylor said at a board meeting Wednesday. 

The district is remediating schools across the county and in a handful of spots, Taylor said. Goshen Elementary School, New Hampshire Estates Elementary School and Loiederman Middle School are three schools that were mentioned by name...

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/education/montgomery-county-schools-mold-hvac-systems/65-c091bd14-eaf0-4a44-8910-cfb6ba181b3f

‘Our Kids Can’t Learn In These Conditions’

   

...“During state testing this week, we were evacuated two times” in Tuesday’s heavy downpour, said 7th grade English teacher Kelly Rankin.

“We assumed there was something, like an actual fire,” she said. Later, the staff was told the alarm sounded due to the overheating of the system...

...Nolan, the SIEU union representative at Loiderman, said she recently was absent three days because of all the mold.

“Our kids can’t learn in these conditions,” declared Joshua Rubin, a world studies teacher, as staff, parents and students cheered and chanted, “Do Your Job” to school administrators.

“We have been through a number of smells. We have been through a number of odors,” said 7th grade English teacher Camilla Barillas, adding, “Frankly we deserve better.”

Sometimes it is 40 degrees in the classroom. Other times, it’s 90 degrees, said Rankin, who has had four different sinus infections. “We can’t wait any longer.”..

https://www.mymcmedia.org/our-kids-cant-learn-in-these-conditions/

WTOP: Violence, mold, asbestos: Staffers at Montgomery Co. alternative school voice safety concerns

Teachers and staff at a building that houses two Montgomery County, Maryland, schools — which cater to students with additional needs — claim the school system is not doing enough to ensure students and staff have both a healthy and safe place to learn.

One half of the Blair G. Ewing Center on Avery Road in Rockville has been home to one alternative learning school known by staff as “Avery Road.” The school is one of three that serves students who have behavioral issues or other learning difficulties that require they be removed from their prior public school.

At the beginning of this school year, a second school, known as “Cloverleaf” in Germantown, relocated to the vacant side of the Blair Ewing facility. Two staff members who spoke with WTOP said they arrived to find mold and even warnings about asbestos.

“When we first came in, we had visible mold on ceiling tiles and walls and floors. We had leaks in some of the bathrooms that dripped and flowed down the wall when it rains,” said one teacher WTOP will refer to as “Teacher A.”..

Violence, mold, asbestos: Staffers at Montgomery Co. alternative school voice safety concerns - WTOP News

Connecticut Town Pays $500K to Settle School Indoor Air Quality Lawsuit

The original report cites ‘poor building conditions,’ including indoor air quality problems responsible for student injuries and declining health.

The town of Wilton, Connecticut has recently agreed to pay a $500,000 settlement following a lawsuit regarding the environmental conditions, namely, the poor indoor air quality at a local school. In the original complaint, parents alleged that their children had been harmed by poor building conditions, though the extent of the injuries are not specified in the lawsuit, according to The Register Citizen...

https://www.campussafetymagazine.com/news/connecticut-town-pays-500k-to-settle-school-indoor-air-quality-lawsuit/

Mold, Poor Ventilation and Heavy Mold Alleged

Having begun back in 2015, the Lowtherts claimed that “wet building conditions, poor ventilation, mold, high carbon dioxide and poor indoor air quality were well known to the Defendants, their teachers, staff and administrators at the Miller-Driscoll School and throughout the Wilton Public School system for a number of years,” which led to “injuries” to their children, who are also named as plaintiffs.

Prince George's Co. Elementary School Closing for Mold Concerns

An elementary school in Prince George's County, Maryland, will be shuttered when the new school year starts due to concerns about air quality and mold, the school district confirmed to News4.

District Heights Elementary School is closing temporarily, and buses will take students to an empty school building instead, the school district said. It is not yet clear how long the school will be closed.

In March 2017, parents raised concerns about the school's air quality and said there was mold at the school...

https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Prince-Georges-Co-Elementary-School-Closing-for-Mold-Concerns-491593521.html

KUOW: 'They Need To Go': The Environmental And Health Costs Of Portable Classrooms

...Those short-term fixes can lead to chronic problems. They burden schools with high energy costs and frequent maintenance needs. They expose students and teachers to mold and mildew, poor ventilation and the potential for volatile gases from cheap building materials...

...“If you can smell the humanity and taste the humidity, you know you have a ventilation issue,” Blake says.

Next comes a device that resembles a remote control and detects carbon dioxide (CO2) levels.

He runs a wire through what looks like a windsock and holds one end to the CO2 monitor, the other to the ceiling vent. The tool, which Prill sewed for him from a lampshade, funnels air directly into the device for a better reading.

Blake uses carbon dioxide as an indicator of whether enough fresh air passes through a room or if students are breathing germs, allergens and chemicals that accumulate in stagnant air. All of these trigger asthma — one of the leading causes of both school absences and child hospitalizations, Blake says.

When Blake started this work in 1995, Bellingham opened its doors to him first. It was a courageous move, he says. For most schools throughout Oregon and Washington — and the rest of the country — there is no Dave Blake. There is no ghostbuster to call...

http://kuow.org/post/they-need-go-environmental-and-health-costs-portable-classrooms

STORM FORCED MOLD REMEDIATION AT SHERWOOD HIGH

 In late July, more than a day of rain dropped more than 3 inches on Montgomery County, subsequently flooding Sherwood High School.

With the water gone, four classrooms were left with mold, and cleanup began immediately, Montgomery County Public Schools spokeswoman Gboyinde Onijala said Tuesday. After that was completed, 22 other classrooms were found to have mold, and crews completed remediation in those classrooms Tuesday, she said...

http://www.mymcmedia.org/storm-forced-mold-remediation-at-sherwood-high/

Upset parents claim Md. school building unsafe, causing students, staff to get sick

http://www.fox5dc.stfi.re/news/local-news/246211605-story?sf=gwadljy#/aa

Howard Co. BOE Paid Attorney $10,000 on Mold Issues instead of Removing Mold

From Howard County parents:

Thru an MPIA of all invoices from Attorney Jeff Krew since October, we see that taxpayers also funded his work on a "mold dispute" totaling over $10,000. This is just since October. This is an awful lot of money for a mold problem HCPSS said was remediated before school started and one in which no member of community pursued legal action. What exactly have we paid for?

The day after the Board of Public Works meeting on January 27th, in which Governor Hogan and Comptroller Franchot interrogated Dr. Foose about parent communication and maintenance, Jeff Krew earned $987 from taxpayers.

https://www.facebook.com/Mold-in-Howard-County-Schools-Information-for-Parents-1652648218315788/

The Montgomery County Board of Education uses the same law firm.

How much mold is too much?

In the weeks since Superintendent Renee Foose acknowledged that Glenwood Middle School has had a recurring mold problem, teachers and parents of students have started to come forward with stories of health issues that they believe were caused by mold in the building.
One teacher told of dizziness and heart palpitations at work. Another had breathing problems that led to an emergency room visit. Multiple teachers reported students with nosebleeds, sinus infections and bronchitis. A parent said a mysterious illness that caused her son to miss 16 1/2 days during his sixth-grade year was finally starting to make sense.
The stories paint a picture at odds with assurances from Howard County Public School System officials, who say the middle school's problems have been minimal and were promptly remedied...

 http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/howard/lisbon-fulton/ph-ho-cf-glenwood-mold-follow-0716-20150715-story.html#page=1

PG mistakenly sends unedited email to mother concerned about mold in the classrooms | WJLA.com

Md. school mistakenly sends unedited email to mother concerned about mold in the classrooms | WJLA.com

MCPS school building: A rat lay dead...

Yes, this auditorium is in a MCPS school building currently in use. This auditorium has been rotting inside a MCPS school for 14 years.    

Gazette: When will the curtain rise again for the Old Blair Auditorium

It’s like a horror movie. 

Shoes and clothes left from a final performance are strewn about the dressing rooms. Mold has crept over the auditorium seats, stage curtains, and in the bathrooms. A rat lay dead at the women’s dressing room entrance, and parts of the ceiling have fallen down from water leaks...

Video: Watch MCPS Middle School Flooding

See post on the Old Blair auditorium that has been left to rot. 
The auditorium is in the same building as the flooding you see in the video above.