STATE OF THE MOLD

Home found for Jack students

By Noah Bruce

Portland has found a new, temporary home for the 289 William B. Jack Elementary students: the W.T. Grant Building at 510 Congress Street, to be called the Downtown Jack School.

At a press conference August 28, superintendent of schools Mary Jo O’ Connor said she was “delighted with the Grant Building. It is bright, clean, airy, and the best news is it can house the whole staff and the 300 students.” She said she is “shooting” for an opening day of September 10, one week later than other Portland schools.

O’ Connor made the decision to close Jack Elementary earlier this month when Stachybotrys chartarum — a mold that aggravates asthma and allergies, causes headaches, and may be linked to more serious medical problems like lung bleeding — was discovered within the schools (Lee http://www.portlandphoenix.com/archive/features/01/08/24/feat_mold.html).

O’Connor said the Grant building, which has a new ventilation system, is free of the mold. She stressed that the building is a temporary solution and hopes to have a permanent option “by Christmas break if not sooner.” One option her staff is exploring involves buying or renting portables. The portables could be placed on the grounds of the Jack School or another location yet to be determined.

O’Connor says housing the students in the Grant building will cost around $100,000, which will come from the school budget. The permanent solution will cost $1 million if O’Connor opts to purchase instead of rent portables. She says she is working with the city and the state to fund the permanent solution.

Transporting Jack students to the Downtown Jack School will require five busses, whereas the old school only required one bus, as most students lived nearby. Director of Transportation for Portland Schools Kevin Mallory said arrivals and departures from the school will be staggered to avoid congestion on Congress Street, but some additional traffic may be unavoidable. He also urged drivers on the East End to take care, as there would be an increase in the number of students waiting for the bus in the area.