Students at Talbot Community School in Portland have been cleared to start classes on Friday after mold was found in more than a dozen classrooms in mid-August.
Portland Public Schools spokesperson Tess Nacelewicz said Talbot Community School will reopen for staff on Thursday to set up their classrooms for all students (prekindergarten through grade 5) to start school on Friday.
According to Nacelewicz, the latest air quality tests from not only classrooms, but also from the school library show that all those spaces have been cleaned, tested and cleared for occupancy.
The Portland Public Schools announced last week that the start of classes at Talbot would be delayed for two days to make sure key instructional spaces were cleared after mold was recently detected there.
The mold, first detected about two weeks ago, is aspergillus, according to Nacelewicz. It’s a mold that exists both indoors and outdoors. It doesn’t make most people sick. But it can put people with weakened immune systems or lung diseases at a higher risk of developing health problems, and the district wanted to make sure the building was safe for everyone.
Nacelewicz said all spaces except for the gym and a small number of offices have been cleaned and cleared for occupancy as of Thursday.
Test results for the offices are expected on Wednesday. The gym will remain unoccupied until it is cleared, which is expected to happen next week.
The Riverton branch of the Portland Public Library, which is adjacent to Talbot, still needs mold remediation and remains closed.
The district will be working with the city to address the problem.
The district will retest the building later in the fall.
