Classroom shuffle: Mold forces NJ school district to move students around

Mold concerns forced the shuffling of students at two New Jersey schools, forcing an entire middle school to learn online.

"Earlier today, we learned that additional classrooms in Bobby’s Run and Lumberton Middle School have tested positive for mold," Lumberton Township School District Superintendent Dr. Colleen Murray wrote in a letter sent to school families.

The mold concerns were reported in 10 rooms inside Bobby’s Run and 16 rooms at Lumberton Middle School, Murray said. The nurse's office and teachers' lounge were among the closed rooms.

Léelo en español aquí.

It all started when a teacher noticed a moldy smell at the start of the school year, Murray told NBC10. The district brought in professionals who detected mold. Those results came in Wednesday afternoon, Murray said.

The district worked with state and county education and health officials to devise a plan to keep kids leaning while remediation efforts are underway.

"For students and staff in Bobby’s Run, we are able to minimize disruption by relocating classes to areas within LMS that are not impacted," Murray wrote. "However, given the number of classrooms affected in Lumberton Middle School, LMS students will shift to remote learning beginning on Thursday, September 21, 2023."

With no exact remediation date, the district warned "LMS families should plan for the possibility of two weeks of remote learning."

Murray said they "are working diligently to get a definitive remediation date." Until then, students and teachers will need to adjust to different learning spaces.

Both schools were put on a 2-hour delay Thursday morning to give teachers time to relocate and prep their classrooms or prepare to teach remotely, the district said.