Pembroke Hears Detailed Report on Hobomock Elementary Air Quality Concerns
Superintendent outlines extensive testing and remediation efforts dating back to 2016
PEMBROKE - March 4 - The Pembroke School Committee receives a comprehensive presentation on air quality testing and remediation efforts at Hobomock Elementary School during their March 4 meeting. Superintendent Erin Obey details the district's response to mold concerns, including recent HVAC cleaning and installation of air purifiers in classrooms.
Obey begins by explaining why Hobomock Elementary experiences more air quality issues than other district schools, noting its unique HVAC system.
"North Pembroke, the building you're in right now, Bryantville and the middle school each have a Univent system. That means every single classroom is almost its own system," Obey explains. "At Hobomock, the air is controlled by six rooftop units."
These rooftop units, many of which are over 40 years old, service different sections of the building. The school, built in 1972 with renovations in 1997, relies on this aging infrastructure.
The presentation traces air quality concerns back to 2003, when a press release from then-superintendent Pat Randall requested funds to professionally clean and remove mold found at Hobomock due to water infiltration and high humidity.
More recently, in November 2016, concerns about musty odors prompted air quality testing by an environmental consultant. This led to a full indoor air quality assessment of all five district buildings by the Department of Public Health in 2017.
The most recent concerns began in August 2023, when staff returning to Hobomock found papers and cardboard with spotting or water damage. The administration consulted with Board of Health agent Lisa Cullity and had affected rooms professionally cleaned over Labor Day weekend.
"We heard from a couple of staff members about papers, cardboard that seemed to have some spotting on it or some water damage. Obviously, that's concerning," Obey says.
Testing in September 2023 revealed elevated levels of aspergillus, penicillium, and cladosporium in room 225. Additional testing led to a remediation plan that included purchasing HEPA air filters, professional cleaning of the ductwork system, and regular surface disinfecting.
In October 2023, the Pembroke Teachers Association filed a complaint for hazardous working conditions with the Division of Labor Standards. After remediation was completed in November, follow-up testing showed no elevated results, and the DLS complaint was closed.
The district has spent approximately $166,000 addressing these concerns since August 2023, including $33,000 on testing and reports, $67,000 on ductwork cleaning, and additional funds for HVAC maintenance, air conditioning unit replacement, and professional cleaning services.
Future plans include quarterly monitoring at a cost of $2,200 per session and a complete HVAC replacement at Hobomock estimated at $1.3 to $1.6 million. The district has been requesting funds for HVAC replacements at town meetings for the past four years.
"We are obviously moving towards a full HVAC replacement at Hobomock Elementary School," Obey states. "We have started working with vendors on the bidding process to hopefully accomplish that replacement over the course of this summer."
The district has also requested $100,000 in the upcoming Spring town meeting to continue removing carpeting at Hobomock.
School Committee member David Boyle emphasizes the safety of the building: "We are fully confident the building is safe and healthy. There's no doubt."
"I don't think there's one person on this committee in this administration, whatever, that would put a child, a faculty member, an administrator in an unsafe building," Boyle adds.
Parent Katie McPhail asks whether the district plans to remove all carpeting from areas where mold has been found, including the library. She also suggests more regular communication about air quality testing.
"Would it be possible for you to continuously share that as it happens? So quarterly send out an email that says, this is what we're doing, this is where it is," McPhail asks.
Obey agrees to improve communication through building administrators, noting the importance of maintaining connection between school leadership and the parent community.
The presentation includes detailed information about the various types of testing conducted, remediation steps taken, and ongoing monitoring plans. All reports and test results are available on the district's website.
Committee member Susan Bollinger notes that social media posts have accused the district of lacking transparency, but points out that testing results have been publicly available on the school website for a year.
"It's very clear. I mean, how long have you had the mold testing results on our school website?" Bollinger asks.
Obey responds that the district has been consistently transparent, adding test results to the website as they become available.
"We have been consistently working on this," Obey says. "I think the narrative that's out there isn't fair."
Several parents share emotional testimonies about alleged bullying and harassment at Pembroke schools during public comment, with two mothers describing troubling experiences their children faced at Pembroke High School.
Katie McPhail, a mother of five who has had children in all five Pembroke schools over 17 years, speaks about her son's experience with what she describes as bullying by staff at the high school.
"My children have been blessed with incredibly supportive, loving, and understanding teachers. Our experience has been overwhelmingly positive," McPhail says. "With the exception of one of my son's experiences at the high school."
McPhail describes how her son was allegedly targeted, constantly harassed, followed around, and spoken to in condescending ways. She claims he was frequently searched without finding anything.
"Over the course of six months, he was searched dozens and dozens of times, without reason and without finding anything," McPhail says. "After one search, where again, nothing was found, he was told by an administrator, 'I know you have friends that smoke and I've caught them, so I know I will catch you too.'"
According to McPhail, her son was eventually "bullied right out of Pembroke High School" and now has an out-of-district placement. She reads a statement from her son, who writes that he was "stripped of all confidence" and "dreaded school."
"I have never been so mistreated by an adult, let alone an administrator, before attending Pembroke High School," the statement reads. "They showed me that the people who should be there to help you are just as capable of hurting you."
Rhonda Rosano, another Pembroke parent, shares similar concerns about her son, who she says was diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and ODD before entering high school.
Rosano describes an incident where her son was allegedly interrogated by an administrator over a hand gesture in a class photo. She claims the administrator repeatedly questioned her son despite his consistent denials of knowing the gesture had any sexual meaning.
"Eventually, I had to stop the questioning of him due to the unnecessary interrogation, harassment, intimidating, and bullying that I saw," Rosano says.
She adds that when she asked the administrator how they determined her son was lying, the administrator allegedly responded, "The day that I got this job."
The meeting also addresses an incident that occurred that morning at one of the district's schools, where a community member allegedly took photographs of children.
Angeleena Ahrens, a parent of a sixth-grade student at Hobomock Elementary School, questions the policy regarding community members being allowed near children during morning drop-off.
"What happened this morning at the school with a member of community being loud beyond where parents are allowed to then take pictures and videos of children? Unacceptable," Ahrens says.
She explains that community members were invited to schools that morning to show support for teachers, but claims one individual was allowed past the normal parent drop-off boundaries.
"Why was a member of our community that was there not for support allowed past that line near our children?" Ahrens asks. "Why were they allowed to take pictures of our children?"
Superintendent Erin Obey responds that school campuses are open to the public during the school day, though building access requires authorization.
"Our campuses are open to the public over the course of the school day," Obey says. "Community is allowed on the property during the student day."
Regarding photography, Obey explains that while students have a reasonable expectation of privacy, there isn't a policy prohibiting photography on school grounds.
"This morning, as you said earlier, there was a member of the community that was here. They were not disrupting traffic. They were not interrupting student drop-off," Obey says. "That individual wanted to take a photo to document the staff, the adults that were participating in the event. He can do that."
School Committee Chair Patrick Chilcott adds that when events are open to the public, such situations can occur.
"When you open these things up to the public, this is a potential outcome of opening those things up to the public," Chilcott says.
Later in the meeting, Chilcott addresses some of the allegations made during public comment, stating that the committee follows the same process for all complaints against employees.
"Every employee deserves to have the exact same process portrayed with them," Chilcott says. "Last year, we had a teacher who had a tremendous amount of complaints levied against them. This same process was put forward."
He adds, "I guarantee you that if it was found that an employee either meets the legal standard of harassment or unsafe working environment, that will be dealt with."
Other items discussed at the meeting include:
* State representatives attended to discuss Chapter 70 education funding and potential supplemental budget opportunities
* The committee heard public comments regarding concerns about high school administration
* A discussion about vocational education access for Pembroke students
* The committee voted to enter executive session to discuss collective bargaining strategy
The next School Committee meeting is scheduled for March 18, with an executive session starting at 6 p.m. and the public meeting beginning at 7:30 p.m.