MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) – Officials in the Charleston County School District are working to make sure it’s safe for young kids to return to Whitesides Elementary School after moving to an eLearning day Thursday.
Parents with children who go to Mamie P. Whitesides Elementary in Mount Pleasant were notified students and staff will have another eLearning day on Friday.
Principal Michelle Conner made the announcement Thursday evening.
“The decision was made to move the school to eLearning after two students had medical emergencies within the last three weeks, the last of which occurred on October 18,” the email reads. “While we remain unsure if the medical emergencies are connected in any way, the medical emergencies coupled with indoor air quality concerns in some areas this year, as well as ongoing HVAC repairs, caused district officials to move to eLearning which allowed for CCSD to conduct assessments of the physical environment. Our facilities team with support from members of the Mount Pleasant Fire Department and Hazmat team tested air quality levels throughout the building today. There were no findings that indicate an unsafe air quality environment.”
District officials say repairs have been done on the unit and ordered parts to get one of the units functioning at max capacity. The district says they have installed permanent monitoring devices throughout the school.
Parents were first notified of the eLearning day Wednesday night.
“Out of an abundance of caution, the district will now be moving Whitesides Elementary School to eLearning for students and remote work for employees for Thursday,” the initial email read. “The district will work with key personnel and assess the building to ensure a safe learning environment for all students.”
District officials say they are working on testing the air quality in the school. They say the readings were within OSHA standards, but in some locations, the readings were higher than what is normally found in indoor settings.
This comes after the school notified parents of an apparent carbon dioxide issue on Tuesday. Parents received the following email:
Good afternoon Whitesides Families,
Due to concerns that were brought to me, our facilities team conducted air quality tests in our building. On Wednesday, October 11, and Friday, October 13, Facilities Management’s Environmental Services Industrial Hygienist collected carbon dioxide (CO2) readings at various locations in the building. The readings are well within OSHA standards for safe indoor air quality, but in some locations are higher than what is typically seen in indoor settings.
On Monday morning, October 16, an inspection of the HVAC system showed that the units that introduce outside air into the building were not performing at 100% capacity which can allow CO2 levels to stay higher. Again, although the levels are above what is seen in similar environments they are well below the level that is considered unhealthy indoor air quality. In the meantime, repairs have already been done on the outdoor air units and parts have been ordered to get them all functioning at maximum capacity as soon as possible. As an additional precaution, Facilities Management will be installing permanent CO2 monitoring devices throughout the school.
Regarding further addressing indoor air concerns, the district collected air samples in several classrooms to determine levels of indoor airborne spores. Analysis of the lab results will be received in the next week.
We will keep you updated as we receive more information, but please know that we are committed to ensuring that our building is a safe environment for all of our students and staff. Thanks and have a great night,
This is a developing story.
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High levels of CO2, medical emergencies prompt eLearning days at Whitesides Elementary
