LAFAYETTE — Cleaning operations continued Monday at Plantation Elementary School, where a toxic mold infestation was recently discovered.

An attorney for the family that first brought up the complaint, meanwhile, questioned the Lafayette Parish school system’s methods for testing and cleaning.

Lafayette Parish School Superintendent James Easton, in response, said Monday that the system has, at all levels and all times, been responsive to parents’ worries in the matter.

“I appreciated the sensitivity of the School Board, and I applaud the leadership of (Plantation) Principal Kay Marix and her staff,” he said.

Easton said the school system has gone through several rounds of testing and cleaning.

“I think that, given that, it is clear that we have taken the mold situation and the health of our students very seriously,” Easton said.

Chris Villemarette, of Lafayette’s Hawkins and Villemarette law firm, represents the Philliber family, whose son attended Plantation until he had an apparent reaction to mold-produced toxins that his parents believe he was exposed to at the school.

Villamerette said the family has not only had to pay for the student’s medical expenses, but had to sue the school system to be allowed to test the school for mold and had to pay the costs of the expensive testing.

He said system officials were either ignoring the complaints — not testing for mold or not doing the tests properly — before the testing the Phillibers paid for was done on March 31.

The school system’s air quality testing, also done on March 31, indicated the presence of a mold known as stachybotrys in the school’s band room — possibly because of a leaking air conditioner system — and school officials reported that the band room and neighboring band storage room were extensively cleaned over the Easter break in the second week of April.

After parents continued to complain, and state officials made a visual inspection on April 20, system-hired contractors began testing and cleaning the heating and air conditioning system throughout the school.
Plantation will not reopen for staff and students until Wednesday.

Villemarette, meanwhile, said that the parents of seven students from the school have tested their children for exposure to the mold toxin and all seven tests have indicated exposure.

“The tests show that these seven children are sick,” he said.

Easton said that many parents of students at the school have said they appreciate the steps the system has taken at Plantation.

“There are clearly some parents who are fully sincere and genuinely concerned for their children,” he said. “I also believe there are parents who are opportunistic and look to take advantage.”

Marix said Monday that absenteeism during the week after the Easter break — when the mold concerns began to become public — ran at about 2 percent.

She said that’s about normal for the school, which has about 630 students.
Marix also said that, other than the Philliber’s son, only three other students have been taken out of school for concerns about mold.

She said the parents of those students have not withdrawn their children from Plantation for transfer to another school or home-schooling, but are keeping them home under provisions that allow them to be “homebound” for medical concerns.

Marix said that some other parents have spoken about home-schooling or transfers, but have not done so.
Villemarette dismisses the system’s efforts to clean up the potential mold problem.

“It’s a waste of money,” he said. “What’s it going to look like next year? Mold grows because there is water present, and they have done absolutely nothing to find out where the water is coming from.”

Easton said system officials will learn from the current situation, and apply what is learned to prevent a reoccurrence.
Villemarette said system officials ignored the Phililbers’ complaints until the family forced the issue by suing to gain entry to the school for testing, and the tests the system did prior to the Philliber-hired testing is suspect.
“All this stuff they were doing before was crap,” he said.

Easton said that he does not remember anyone on the Phillibers’ side complaining of the system not being responsive prior to the recent public outcry.

He said Villemarette and the family seemed to be satisfied with the actions the system had been taking.
Villemarette said Plantation might just be the beginning of the system’s mold concerns.

“I’ve been approached by other parents who think there might be some problem with some of the older schools,” he said.

Easton said that his staff will use what is learned from Plantation to try to ensure that the situation does not arise elsewhere in the system.

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