By CHRISTINE BOATWRIGHT / Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO – Shelby County Schools Superintendent Randy Fuller sent a three-page letter to faculty, staff and parents of Montevallo Elementary concerning recent mold and sanitation issues at the school Nov. 30.

The majority of the letter spells out a timeline of what the school system has done to address mold issues, which were reported in September.

“More information will be coming in the next few weeks, and I will continue to inform you as updates are received,” Fuller wrote. “I apologize for the fact that there has been a breakdown in the line of communication between the Central Office and the teachers, local staff and parents.”

According to the letter, Fuller has received many emails from teachers and community members, and he spent several hours at MES Nov. 28 to talk with teachers.

Mold originally was reported in a fifth grade classroom, and the school system hired ERG Environmental, an independent environmental consultant group in Pelham, to conduct indoor air quality testing.

According to the letter, ERG determined the spore count was “higher than normal” in the classroom. ServPro then cleaned the area, following ERG guidelines.

The mold occurred due to drainage issues outside the walls of the classroom, the letter stated. The fifth-graders were moved to portable classrooms.

ServPro then cleaned all furniture in the fifth-grade wing. The company also treated interior walls and deep cleaned the rooms. The wing will be repainted, baseboards and shoe molding will be replaced, existing ceiling tile will be removed, ceiling grid work will be cleaned and new ceiling tile will be installed.

The air quality will be tested when the work is complete; the work should be complete in early January 2013, the letter stated.

ERG also conducted a second test randomly throughout the building, but found other areas to be “within normal levels.”

According to the letter, ERG is scheduled to test every room in the building next week.

“We continue to maintain that Montevallo Elementary School is a safe environment for students, faculty, staff and parents. My goal is to keep you updated as I receive additional information,” Fuller wrote.