Testing has revealed that mold contamination has not increased in residence halls over the last five years, according to Associate Dean of Women Stephanie Gravel.
Recent health concerns from the former head resident assistant of Mauck Residence prompted the college to test her room for mold. The results showed no elevated mold levels, Gravel said, but the student decided to move out anyway.
“We don’t want anybody living in an unsafe space,” Gravel said.
When students raise concerns about mold, the college brings in an outside company to test the room and the surrounding area, Gravel said. The deans share the results with the students.
Tim Wells, associate vice president for administrative affairs, said college staff will first conduct a visual inspection of the space after receiving concerns about mold.
“At that point, regardless of whether there are visible signs of mold, the facilities department typically contracts with a third-party testing company that specializes in environmental, occupational health, and safety testing to conduct sampling in accordance with industry standards and the guidelines of the analyzing accredited laboratory where the samples are sent for inspection and analysis,” Wells said in an email.
If the company finds mold, the room is cleaned according to industry best practices, Wells said.
“Additional steps may be taken to ascertain and correct whatever may have been the contributing issue,” Wells said.
In the case of sophomore Evelyn Gray, who briefly lived in Mauck Residence in the fall, the school did find mold in her room. Gravel said the mold developed when, after housekeeping shut the door after cleaning the room, the air handlers in the dorm were accidentally turned off, preventing air circulation.
Gray said she noticed the mold the night she moved into the dorm.
“We had gotten all my stuff into the room, and I was dusting before unpacking, and noticed some dust that was too white and regular to be real dust,” Gray said. “I couldn’t believe it — we had already found the mattress to be moldy, and I thought that that was the end of it. But there was mold on all the wooden furniture. Once I found it in one place, it was easy to see it everywhere.”
Gray and her roommate moved to Kirn Residence while the room was cleaned. If the necessary cleaning is beyond what maintenance crews can handle, Gravel said, the college hires an outside company.
“I was not super happy with the response. At the time, it seemed like it was being minimized and not taken seriously,” Gray said. “Later on, I talked to the deans and it turned out that most of the problems I had with the response boiled down to misunderstandings with the chain of communication. So overall, I’m happy with the response.”
After an outside company deemed the room safe, the deans gave Gray the option to return to Mauck or stay in Kirn.
“I was really happy to stay in New Dorm,” Gray said. “It honestly turned out the best it could, and I love where I am now.”
The increased mold testing over the past few years comes from rising concerns from students, Gravel said. The school works to complete testing as quickly as possible.
“The college is very gracious in honoring these tests when we have these concerns,” Gravel said.
Wells said students can help prevent mold in their rooms by maintaining cleanliness and air flow.
“In addition to good communication relative to any observable issue, ensuring that exhaust fans are utilized in the bathrooms to remove moist and humid air is a good step, as well as maintaining the general cleanliness of spaces and ensuring that proper air circulation and filtration is not inhibited by moving furniture so that it inadvertently blocks equipment or air vents,” Wells said.
