Response to mold issue article of August 12th.

Once again, I come with responses to articles from the Springfield News-Sun concerning the Northeastern Local School District. These responses are from the article dated August 11, 2010 Megan Gildow's article "Mold found in 10 rooms at Northeastern High School". Unlike previous comments and questions, I will respond to those that are legitimate and not redundant or argumentative.

As always, I am speaking on my behalf, not the board's. I recommend that the reader validate my statements so as to ascertain that I am responding with the truth.

Concerning one comment from "yeah right:

"Mr. Kadel I have heard one tirade after the other. No matter what anyone says on this thread you are going to say they are wrong! Well I have a question for you to put on your little blog. What makes your comments anymore closer to the truth than any of ours? You are not a god or are you anymore perfect than any of us. I am so sick of you coming on here scare tacting these folks with your blog. You can spout anything you want sir but the proof is in the pudding. Sale all you want were not buying
Yeah Right!!!"


What makes my comment closer to the truth is being involved with the district for the past twenty years, questioning why things happen, investigating the events, learning how things work in public education and listening. I am not an ogre who "scares" anyone. I have the courage to give my name knowing there are those who can easily question my information without being accountable for their comments. It is called responsibility, accountability and integrity.

This is what I've tried to maintain throughout my time with the district. I don't ask anyone to believe what I say. I only ask that you question my responses, research my comments and judge for yourself.

With this being said, what follows are responses to the comments.




"dont worry n/e hs im sure a levy will someday pass so we can build new schools. first class rooms in hallways now random mold. tell me why i moved to this district again?
holly
6:50 AM, 8/13/2010"


holly: thank you for your response. We cannot put a levy on the ballot in November because there is not enough time to put two resolutions together for the levy. I hope you moved to this district for quality education. There is no reason that you can't continue to expect quality education. Failure of the levy doesn't change our commitment to educating children. The levy was an opportunity to fulfill a need. The board will be discussing the next step for the district at our board meeting on Monday evening. I hope you can come and be part of the discussion.



"Why did it get that bad in the first place? Ever hear of DE-HUMIDIFIERS? Could have used the money ya spent on the SPECIAL ELECTIONS!!! One more reason I didn't vote for new schools! TAKE CARE OF WHAT WE HAVE!!!
think about it
6:52 AM, 8/13/2010"


think about it: thank you for your comment. There were several factors that caused this situation. First there were de-humidifiers that malfunctioned. Secondly, the humidity during the heat wave for several days didn't help the situation. This would have occured if the levy had passed. We will be discussing this issue and others at our board meeting on Monday evening. Hope you can attend and be part of the discussion. We will appreciate your input.



"just a thought, why wasn't the mold problem taken care of as soon as it was noticed? I am sure you would have addressed it immediately if it were your home!! I am not so sure this is all about the safety of the kids and more about just trying to get a newer school than Kenton Ridge.The district needs to hire maintenance people instead of janitors.Having a maintenance crew could address the concerns immediately and take care of them instead of waiting until it too late to fix.Just a thought!!!!!
concerned citizen
7:24 AM, 8/13/2010"


concerned citizen: thank you for your comment. It was taken care of when it was discovered. The rooms had been cleaned, however, the heat, humidity, failure of the de-humidifier to dispel the humidity caused this problem. We did respond immediately upon the problem being discovered.



"There is a board meeting at KR this coming Monday evening starting at 6:30 PM. I'm going to be there and hope all of you "informed" people will come to share your "wisdom", ask questions and inform the board as to what the "facts" are about this district. The wealth of "knowledge", intelligence and integrity displayed in these comments is overwhelming. Maybe we can top 260 comments!!!!
ne supporter
7:50 AM, 8/13/2010"


ne supporter: thank you for your comment. Looking forward to seeing you and others at the meeting on Monday evening.



"If you don't think this story has connections with the failed levy your head is in the sand. They could have handled this in house but they wanted the publicity of calling the CCCHD. It is a slap in the face of their janitors.
ray
7:52 AM, 8/13/2010"


ray: thank you for your comment. I can tell you that this has nothing to do with the failure of the levy. We don't need the publicity. Calling CCCHD is a requirement when dealing with any situation that is a health hazard. Failure to contact CCCHD in this problem would be very irresponsible on behalf of the administration. I don't believe any janitor was "slapped" in the face. The problem was due to the de-humidifiers malfunctioning and the high humidity from the recent heat wave we have been experiencing.



"sure is funny how all of sudden you discover mold after maintance and janitors have been there all summer long and you call the ccchd right before school.you the board just wanted to start something again.give it a rest and get in there and do your job that you are paid highly to do.
give it a rest
8:33 AM, 8/13/2010"


give it a rest: thank you for your comment. As I have stated, the problem was caused by the de-humidifiers malfunctioning. Timing couldn't have been worse with the start of school. We are working on getting the mold cleaned up before school begins. The board or district has nothing to gain from this situation. The board gains nothing from "starting" anything. The board is not "highly paid". Do you know how much we are compensated to be a board member? Please check this out, you may be surprised.



"I think the theory was mold = bad environment = yes vote = new schools.
math wiz
8:33 AM, 8/13/201"


math wiz: thank you for your comment. We lost the opportunity for new schools due to more no votes than yes votes. There is no more guaranteed money for NELSD. This situation will not calculate your statement.



"Obviously, Tecumseh taxpayer you need to read the article again. You state that mold doesn't just appear at these levels....what levels??? Have you seen the level of mold in NE???? Please be CORRECTLY INFORMED before you spout off. The article does state that the mold level was not so severe that it could not be cleaned up in house, etc., Northeastern does not need more ignorant, uninformed people spouting off! Oh...and by the way, I do believe voting was over when this article was written
tired of ignorance
10:42 AM, 8/13/2010"


tired of ignorance: thank you for your comment. You are correct. The vote has already been taken and the people opted for no schools. There is no more guaranteed money available. The voters do no want new schools. As you stated, this situation didn't occur over a long period of time. Conditions such as high humidity, malfunctioning de-humidifiers closed up rooms and mold grows pretty rapidly.



"Tired of ignorance:Not trying to be disrespectful, but hasn't the levy been turned down 3 or 4 times?Ignorance is bliss, the people obviously are frustrated with the Northeastern district.Maybe if they show that they can take care of what they have,the levy might pass. If you give your kid a car to drive and he abuses it and doesn't take care of it and it breaks down do you just go out and buy him another one? No you tell him if he would have taken care of it,it wouldn't have broke down!
concerned citizen
10:53 AM, 8/13/2010"

concerned citizen: thank you for your comment. You should go to the website for the nelsd at www.nelsd.org You will find the voting history of the district since 1969. The history shows there has not been support throughout the past 40 years. If it is the board, then whomever is serving is an enemy of the people. Even cars become old, rusted and wears out over time, regardless of how well you take care of it.



"MAKE THE NO VOTERS PAY FOR THE CLEAN UP OF THE MOLD!!! They didn't want to spend the money on new, mold, asbestos, radon free schools.. so make THEM pay for the cleanup and maintenance of these old crumbling nearly condemned buildings! I voted YES. Why should I have to pay for the NO voter's selfish mistake!?
Yes Voter
10:57 AM, 8/13/2010"


Yes Voter: thank you for your comment and support. The Administration has notified the insurance company for assistance in paying for the mold clean up. It is a result of de-humidifiers malfunctioning.



"There is no MOLD!!! this is just another plan to get my money. Now they will have some special vote to put this levy on the ballet again. This is supposed to startle parents and forcing them to vote yes. I got news for NELSD we are not dumb and will not be treated as such so nice try better luck next time. You disgust me!!!! They just conveniently found this mold right after they lost a levy LMFAO!!!!
Yeah Right!!!
11:11 AM, 8/13/2010"


Yeah Right!!!: thank you for your comment. Personally I can't believe you or anyone would make such a statement in public, of course without using your name to take responsibility. This is no "scare tactic" to get parents to vote yes. You sir or madam are either paranoid, trying to stir up trouble, vastly uninformed or just plain making trouble. Many of the comments you place on this article are representative of any one of the above. If you believe we "conveniently" found mold....what benefit does it provide or our purpose. Personally sir or madam I have enough responsibilities than to "create" another issue. Since you won't give your name, I can't really know your motivation for your comments.



"BLEACH IS A LOT CHEAPER THAN ME LOSING MY HOME BECAUSE OF THE EXTRA $350 A MONTH ON MY REAL ESTATE TAXES. A LITTLE ELBOW GREESE HELPS TOO.
LARRY
12:24 PM, 8/13/2010"


LARRY: thank you for your comment. Bleach is cheaper, however, the nature of this issue is one that our insurance company has directed us to utilize proper equipment, solutions, protection and concentrated effort to rid the mold from these rooms. We are taking their recommendation. The CCCHD will be the determining factor to assure our rooms will be available for teaching. I'm a little confused by your going to pay an additional $350 a month on your taxes? This shouldn't cost you any additional money in taxes. Since we have no levy for this and the levy for new schools failed, there will be no additional cost to you.



"LOL I found mold in my house last year. Did I build a new house? NO! I found the problem and repaired it. Did I bother the tax payers for repairs to my home NO! I took it right out of my own pocket. So what is the moral of this story? Well Mr. Broderick, it is your house. Dig into your own pocket and fix the problem. No means nothing else but NO!!!!!!! I also agree with Obsevation. I can tell by all the name calling and finger pointing that half this thread isn't even old enough to vote!!!
Yeah Right!!!!
1:05 PM, 8/13/2010"


Yeah Right!!!: didn't really want to respond to you ravings, however, this one I couldn't pass up. I'm sure if you get mold in your home, the CCCHD could care less, however, when it is a public school who educates many children, it becomes an issue. I am looking forward to meeting you at the board meeting. I hope you will be civil and respectful to me as I am to you.



"Just another occurrence where the NELSB has failed to do its job!!! No levy will change this.
Dave
2:56 PM, 8/13/2010"


Dave: thank you for your comment. Dave, looking forward to seeing you on Monday. I trust you will be there to share how a levy will resolve this issue. How did malfunctioning de-humidifiers be a result of the board not doing its job? Anxious to hear your response.



"Several things have become obvious as a result of this fiasco.
1. Before a new school is built, we must rebuild a positive sense of community. Stop all the talk/ pressure for a new tax levy.
2. The administrators of the schools are completely out of touch. Replace them.
3. Blaming the teachers or the students or the parents makes no sense.

Makes too much sense, doesn't it?
Mac
5:19 PM, 8/13/2010"


Mac: thank you for your comment. Three very good points. Will be looking forward to your name being on the ballot in 2011 for school board. You are correct about needing to rebuild the community.



In closing, it becomes very embarrassing to read some of the comments from people who claim to be from the district. To put these comments in the paper for others to read and evaluate who the NELSD is. We have a lot of problems that need resolved, but unfortunately there are too many who want to be part of the problem....we need people who want to be part of the solution.