St. Bernard's Elementary School Council in collaboration with the Eastern School District is hosting a parent information meeting concerning recent school renovations. The meeting will take place at St. Bernard's Elementary School gymnasium on Monday, September 7th, 2009 at 7:00pm. This will be a public meeting and everyone is welcome to attend.
New!
The following reports are posted for the information of members of the St. Bernard's Elementary School Community:
Hazardous Building Materials Investigation St. Bernard's Elementary School - AMEC Earth & Environmental, A Division of AMEC Americas Limited, 133 Crosbie Road, St. John’s, NL A1B 4A5 - May 2009. Read or download the report here.
Airborne Mould Clearance Sampling (Spore Trap) Report - Pinchin LeBlanc Environmental Limited, 27 Austin Street, St. John's, NL A1B 4C3 - September 4, 2009. Read or download the report here.
School Renovation Update Sept. 3, 2009
Letter to: Parents and Guardians (for a PDF of this Memo, click here)
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR
Chairperson: Milton Peach, B.A., B.A. (Ed.) CEO/Director of Education: Ford Rice, B.A., B.Ed., M.Ed.
September 3, 2009 Dear parents/guardians of St. Bernard's Elementary:
I would like to provide clarification on a number of issues pertaining to the extension project that is currently underway at St. Bernard's Elementary.
There have been reports that asbestos was identified in the school. A Hazmat assessment that was carried out for this building in May 2009 did not detect any asbestos in the 34 samples that were analyzed. While asbestos was not detected in the Hazmat assessment, the contractor who was removing a section of drywall in preparation for the extension project had followed provincial regulations and treated the demolition project as if it did contain hazardous materials. This included the workers wearing white suits and masks. This may partly account for the misinformation around the asbestos issue.
During the demolition project, a portion of drywall in the maintenance room near a janitor's sink was found to contain a small amount of suspect mould. An environmental consultant was hired and visited the school on Wednesday, September 2 to assess the situation. While we feel the mould is contained to this section of the school, I have asked the consultant to conduct a full assessment of the school. As per our protocol, mould abatement and remediation work has been carried out under the consultant's supervision. Following the consultant's assessment of the building on Thursday, September 3, 2009 air quality testing will be conducted throughout the entire school building, not just in the section currently under construction. We expect to have final air quality test results over the weekend.
We met with your school council on Wednesday, September 2, 2009 and they very clearly outlined parents' concerns. We will continue to keep the school council informed of any new information and we will provide the final test results once they are available. While we do not anticipate a delayed school opening at this time, we will ensure that parents are informed of any potential changes.
Please rest assured that the health and safety of our students and staff is our highest priority. We will do everything possible to ensure that St. Bernard's Elementary is a safe school environment for everyone.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Ms. Elizabeth Foran, Principal, St. Bernard's Elementary or my office at 758-2381.
FORD RICE
CEO/Director of Education
Suite 601, Atlantic Place, 215 Water Street, Box 64‐66, St. John’s, NL A1C 6C9
Telephone: 709‐758‐2381 Facsimile: 709‐758‐2387 Web Site: www.esdnl.ca
