422 NJ students sent home after mold found in 33 classrooms

Mold was found in 33 classrooms at Alexandria Township School.

The Hunterdon County school sent all 422 PreK-8 students home to learn online.

➡️ Middle school students are expected back in their classrooms Monday.

ALEXANDRIA — For nearly two weeks, students have been unable to attend classes after mold was found in their Hunterdon County school.

Alexandria Township School locked its doors on Sept. 4 after tests found mold in 33 classrooms. All 422 of its PreK-8 students were told to hop online for remote learning.

Mold found after school year had already started

A teacher found mold in an office on the second day of the school year, MyCentralJersey reported. Parents also said their children had respiratory problems and hives, the report said.

RK Environmental tested the building on Sept. 3 and found the mold was caused by heavy rains, high humidity levels, and cool nighttime temperatures. Gold Star Restoration cleaned one wing using air scrubbers and used plastic barriers to block off other sections of the building.

Staff and students in PreK through fourth grade returned on Tuesday. However, middle schoolers in grades five through eight are still learning remotely. School officials said that Friday should be the last day of virtual lessons.

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Alexandria Township School in Hunterdon County

School expects all students back Monday

By Monday, all students should return to their usual classrooms. Superintendent Barbara Popp and Principal Erin Durborow made the announcement in an email to parents Wednesday evening.

"We received encouraging results today, and we are pleased to share that we will be reopening to all of our middle school students on Monday. We are so looking forward to welcoming our middle school students back and having our entire school community together again at ATS. We cannot thank our families enough for their continued support, flexibility, and understanding throughout this process," they said.

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