New Hanover Schools superintendent details cleanup plan after mold found at Hoggard

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — New Hanover County Schools is working to address an ongoing mold problem at Hoggard High School, with district officials outlining short- and long-term plans during Wednesday meetings with parents and staff.

Superintendent Dr. Christopher Barnes met separately with parents and staff to answer questions about the mold, including how long cleanup will take, what caused the problem, and what the district is doing to prevent it from happening again.

About 20 parents attended the meeting. Some said they were concerned about possible health effects after mold was discovered in several areas of the school.

Claire Tyson said her daughter, who is a member of the Hoggard band, was among the students affected after mold was found in the band classroom.

“I did hear from my daughter first, and I was concerned. I wanted to reach out to the school and find out more information,” Tyson said.

The band room, the Naval Junior ROTC wing, the cafeteria and three other classrooms have been closed because of the mold. Students are currently eating lunch in one of the school’s gyms.

Barnes said the district reduced the use of its HVAC systems over the summer to save money. Record-high temperatures and high humidity then created conditions that allowed mold to grow, he said.

While parents were told the mold was not black mold, some remained concerned about potential health effects, including breathing difficulties, skin irritation and headaches.

Philip Rafle said both of his children had classes in affected rooms. He said one of his children may have become sick after being exposed to the mold.

“My son actually came home with a chest cold right after we were told that there was mold. So that put us on a little anxiety. And my daughter was taking pictures of it and sending pictures to both my wife and I,” Rafle said.

Barnes said the district is working on what he described as a “two-week, two-month and two-year plan” to address the problem.

“Our hope right now is to make sure that all of these systems and all of these rooms that are currently being remediated get retested and reopen within the next couple of weeks,” Barnes said. “Within the next couple of months, I’ve ordered new humidity systems that will link into our HVAC systems to try to dry the air out to help it, lower that threshold of the ability for mold to grow. And then over the next couple of years, when the bond passes, one of the projects is to replace the HVAC system here with a system that has humidity control built into it.”

The district’s longer-term plan would only happen if voters approve a proposed $320 million school bond in November’s election.

The bond includes $20 million for HVAC replacements and improvements across New Hanover County Schools.

Barnes said the mold cleanup at Hoggard is expected to cost nearly $500,000.

The district is also considering changes to how it operates HVAC systems during the summer, including avoiding reductions in HVAC use that could contribute to high humidity levels. Officials also plan to increase visual inspections to identify potential mold problems earlier.