Mold, HVAC Issues Raise Concerns At Hillsborough Schools: Photos

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — The Hillsborough Education Association released Friday a growing list of concerns and photos regarding the conditions of the school district's buildings to the community in an effort to raise awareness of the unsafe environment.

"Throughout the summer months, and even recently, the HEA has requested [Superintendent Dr. Lisa Antunes] and Board leadership collaboratively address the outstanding concerns and take steps to keep students and staff safe while doing so," the HEA wrote in a letter. "Unfortunately, there still has been no response to the concerns raised, conditions continue to worsen and few steps have been taken to remediate the safety issues that exist within our buildings."

Among HEA's list of concerns include mold, rainwater running down classroom walls, stained/moldy ceiling tiles, and continued HVAC concerns.

"Many of these issues were ignored before the pandemic and now have grown to add an even greater urgency for the Board leadership and Dr. Antunes to act in order to ensure that the district's reopening plan is built upon commonsense and a shared responsibility to place student and staff safety as the District’s top priority," the HEA stated.

The HEA's biggest concern is the roofing construction taking place at Hillsborough Middle School. As a result of the construction, the HEA says roofing debris is falling through vents and ceiling tiles, the noise and heavy machinery is disrupting lessons as teachers try to teach from their rooms, broken sidewalks, large dumpsters placed in front of the building, and most recently, a large section of ventilation ductwork coming loose and collapsing through the ceiling into the nurse's office bathroom.

Patch's request for comment about the photos and letter from Antunes or Michael Callahan, spokesman for the school district, was not immediately returned.

The HEA pointed out that some students and staff have already returned to the school building while many of the unsafe conditions have remained.

The Hillsborough school district kicked off the school year with virtual learning on Sept. 4 with teachers and some students still able to come into the buildings. The all-virtual mode will continue through Friday, Sept. 25. The district will then switch gears and begin hybrid instruction on Tuesday, Sept. 29.

The letter and photos were shared with the community in hopes of gaining support to stop the reopening of in-person instruction until these issues are addressed.

See below to read HEA's entire letter:

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