Mold Found At Oakland Mills HS Removed, Renovation Plans Still Pushed Out To 2038

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — After mold was discovered growing in two science classrooms and on some bookshelves in the media center at Oakland Mills High School, officials took action. However, the nonprofit Oakland Mills United doesn't believe school officials are moving quickly enough to remedy the source of the problem and proceed with building renovations that have been pushed out to 2038.

“The consequences of years worth of deferred maintenance and HCPSS lack of urgency continues to neglect another generation of students and teachers” said Samuel Hahn, executive director of Oakland Mills United. “Students, teachers and the community deserve better. It is time for the Board of Education and school system leadership to follow through on their promises to the Oakland Mills community and take immediate action to renovate this rapidly deteriorating building and other buildings in the school system."

According to HCPSS deferred maintenance logs, Oakland Mills High School relies on the original HVAC system from 1973 and the building is in need of a renovation, according to Oakland Mills United. A school system assessment of the building around 2017-2018 determined that renovations were needed in 2009 and conditions had deteriorated to the point where the building was no longer a conducive learning environment, the nonprofit stated.

Brian Bassett, spokesperson for the Howard County Public School System, told Patch when mold is discovered, "it is immediately remediated and the root cause of the issue is investigated and repaired."

"That is being done at Oakland Mills High School," Bassett said.

In this instance, limited mold growth was detected Sept. 26. The units serving these areas were scheduled for maintenance this summer, but delivery of the parts from the manufacturer has been delayed even though they were ordered in February 2023, Bassett said.

"Knowing that, regular assessments were done at the school and no mold was found until the inspection on Sept. 26," Bassett said. "The HCPSS Office of the Environment cleaned the limited mold growth in the science classrooms upon discovery and a restoration contractor completed the thorough cleaning of the media center this past weekend."

Oakland Mills United also noted that students, parents, school organizations and community members rallied together in 2022 and 2023 to advocate for renovations at Oakland Mills High School before the Board of Education, County Council and District 13 State Delegation. Renovation plans for Oakland Mills High School have been bumped from 2029 to 2038, the nonprofit noted.

"...we are in the middle of our capital budget process. For several years, many people in the OM community have been advocating for a renovation or replacement project for their school to be sooner as part of the long-range plan. Other communities are advocating on behalf of their schools as well. The tie between the two issues is that they are both part of the operations/capital improvements of the school - including work to the HVAC," Bissell said.

At its Sept. 28 school board meeting, officials shared a letter received by HCPSS Superintendent Michael Martirano from Sen. Guzzone, Del. Atterbeary, Del. Guzzone and Del. Terrasa regarding Oakland Mills High School. His response explained the capital budget and what factors are taken into consideration when scheduling projects. Then he said he would recommend to the board at its upcoming work session to move the Oakland Mills High School project forward, pending funding deliberations.