Fungus invades Clovis High School classrooms

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Fungus invades Clovis High School classrooms

By Marlena Hartz: CNJ staff writer

Thursday, November 3, 2005

Clovis,NM

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Behind the walls of Clovis High School Building E, black fungi

flourish, dotting cabinets and once-hidden surfaces. The building

was closed in September after teachers complained of a pungent

stench. Construction revealed extensive water damage caused by a

leaky roof and the building will not be ready for occupancy until

next school year, school officials said.

School officials said the building will undergo an air quality test

once construction is complete.

While black mold can pose a health risk when exposed and disturbed,

there is nothing that indicates the mold in Building E is toxic,

said Clovis Schools Superintendent Rhonda Seidenwurm.

The leaky roof is being replaced by Newt and Butch Roofing of Clovis

and should be complete by the end of this week, project manager

Hays said. State funds were used to replace three Clovis High

School roofs; construction began in July, and Building E is the last

of the three to be replaced, Hays said. Interior building repairs

have not yet begun.

There are seven classrooms in Building E in which students studied

various subjects. The classes that were formerly held in Building E

are now held in recently constructed Building G, according to Clovis

High School teacher Carol Singletary.

Leaky roofs seem to be a Clovis school epidemic.

When Bibbs is in class, drops of water from the ceiling

sometimes land on her head, she said. On rainy days, a game of

musical chairs ensues in certain classrooms, she said, with students

trying to avoid the drips. She said at least two classrooms in the

Clovis High School, other than those in E, have leaky roofs.

" It messes up our concentration, " Bibbs said.

Clovis High School Principal Jody Balch said he is not aware of

extensive leaking in additional classrooms. Balch said water leaks

at the high school campus are minimal in comparison to those at

other schools. " I'm used to catching water by the bucket full (at

Yucca Junior High School), " said Balch, a former Yucca principal.

That roof is slated to be fixed soon. Newt and Butch were awarded

the project at a Tuesday school board meeting.

Quite a few schools need roof attention, school officials said.

Securing the necessary state funds to replace roofs is in fact the

No. 1 priority in Clovis, and other districts across the state,

according to Public School Facility Authority Regional Manager Jim

, employed to assist the district in receiving capital outlay

funds.

The state has set aside $62 million to address school roofing

concerns, said.

Yucca Junior High School, Sandia Elementary, and Parkview Elementary

will be among the first to see relief, as schools assessed most in

need of new roofs, said Clovis Schools Director of Operation Gene

Beiker. But the majority of the roofs in the district are so old the

20-year warranties that once covered them will soon expire. Those

roofs will need to be replaced by December or January, school

officials said.

The real problem — flat roofs, Beiker said.

" We don't like flat roofs. They do not work well for us, " Beiker

said.

Unfortunately, replacing the schools' flat roofs with pitched roofs

is just too expensive, said Briseno, Clovis schools' director

of federal programs and public relations.

Replacing a school roof generally costs about $2 million. And the

cost of building material and the demand for roofers has skyrocketed

due to a rough hurricane season, said. Recent school

administration bids for roofing work have yielded little response.

The only company to respond to the Yucca bid was Butch and Newt.

The flat roof, nonetheless, has been relegated to the past, as far

as schools are concerned.

New school roofs in the state are being built at a slight angle to

allow water run-off, officials said.