With classrooms impacted by mold, teachers at John H. Woodson Jr. High School took their instruction outdoors Thursday in a working protest over years of unaddressed health and safety concerns. As students sat outside under teacher supervision, Sen. Kurt A. Vialet – who has been touring schools across the territory ahead of a Feb. 5 committee meeting with the Virgin Islands Education Department (VIDE) – visited the campus to witness the situation firsthand.
“Initially, four classrooms were reported to have mold issues, but that number has now increased to 13,” Vialet noted. “I conducted a tour of Woodson last week, focusing on the physical infrastructure. I was particularly concerned about the incomplete kitchen facilities and had discussions with administrators regarding staffing and ongoing maintenance challenges.”
Vialet acknowledged Thursday’s protest, emphasizing that while students remained supervised and engaged in learning activities outside, the action highlighted the urgency of the health concerns. He mentioned discussions with Craig Benjamin, executive director of the Bureau of School Construction and Maintenance (BSCM) under the Office of the Governor, who is slated to present solutions at the upcoming Feb. 5 meeting. “I want our discussions to be solution-based, with clear timelines for addressing these issues,” Vialet stated.
In conversations with education officials, Vialet learned of plans to engage a local contractor from St. Croix to conduct a deep cleaning of the affected classrooms over the upcoming weekend. Both Vialet and Education Commissioner Dionne Wells-Hedrington participated in walk-throughs of the impacted areas, he said.
“The goal is to ensure that schools can resume on Monday without any issues,” Vialet said. “They also plan to perform environmental air quality tests in all classrooms in two weeks to confirm cleanliness and develop a regular maintenance schedule.”
Families also raised concerns about the long-term impact of the mold problem.
Susan Daniel, whose grandson Jayden attends Woodson and suffers from severe allergies, said she had already noticed his health declining throughout the week. She received a notification about the situation at 2:12 p.m. Thursday, less than an hour before school dismissal, stating that the school would be closed on Friday for deep cleaning.
“Historically, once mold infiltrates a building, it’s challenging to eradicate with just cleaning,” Daniel remarked. “There must be an underlying issue, like a leak, that has allowed mold to grow over time. A single cleaning won’t resolve this.”
She also questioned the testing process, asking, “Who will conduct the mold testing? Will they ensure the children aren’t put back at risk?” Daniel added that while the school provided notice about the closure, she felt parents should have been notified earlier in the day so they could make arrangements to pick up their children.
In response, BSCM Director Craig Benjamin explained that a contractor had originally been scheduled to address the mold issue next weekend during the St. Croix Agricultural Fair. However, given the urgency, the Bureau accelerated the process.
“We decided to ask the contractor to come in earlier, and they committed,” Benjamin said. “Another contractor started today, and our team is overseeing the project. The work will continue through Sunday, aiming to have the school ready by Monday morning.”
Benjamin also confirmed that mold testing will still take place next weekend, with immediate remediation for any classrooms that test positive.
To improve ongoing maintenance, Benjamin said the BSCM implemented a temporary work order system in August. He urged school officials to make better use of the system, saying, “We’ve been taking direct calls from principals, which we don’t mind, but utilizing the work order system allows us to track and address issues more systematically.”
The bureau is now working to bring on additional staff to monitor and manage the maintenance system on St. Croix, along with training for school administrators and staff on how to use in as they aim to prevent similar crises in the future, Benjamin said.
