After being away from their school for the first few weeks of the new scholastic year, Northwestern Lehigh Middle School students and staff returned Sept. 17 to their own building.

When mold was detected in a few classrooms on the lower level of the building, middle schoolers were routed to Weisenberg Elementary School and the high school until air quality reports indicated it was safe for occupancy.

“There was a lot of collaboration and cooperation [before we came] up with a plan,” Principal Bill Dovico said. “It came down to space. Based on the space that was available, sixth and seventh graders were moved to Weisenberg.”

According to Dovico, the decision to move the students was made after “some teachers found spots on porous surfaces,” in classrooms on the lower level of the building.

“I asked for air quality testing,” he said. “A contractor came in and did the testing in rooms that we identified as having an issue. They brought the remediators in to start cleaning.”

Dovico said at first the staff was shocked and upset they were going to be displaced. But all the divisions and all the departments came together to make it work and it went really well.”

Eighth graders were moved to the high school.

“We were welcomed with open arms by the high school,” Wendy Madouse, math teacher, said.

“They hosted a breakfast for us and constantly popped in to check on us.”

Dovico said the staff was amazing in meeting the challenge.

“We were dealt these circumstances but we needed to make the first day of school the best and we met that challenge,” Dovico said.

Teacher Nate Hunsicker commented on teaching in the high school.

“Pam (Peters) and I were team teaching social studies at the high school in the new Large Group Instruction room,” Hunsicker said. “This was certainly an adjustment for us having up to 50 kids in a room as a team, but we did a great job making it work.”

Peters also commented on the new “home.”

“Although we invaded the high school staff’s space, they were so cordial and welcoming,” Peters said. “Nate Hunsicker and I were housed in the new Large Group Instruction room where]we shared a space, team teaching the social studies curriculum, which allowed us to collaborate creatively.”

High school English teacher Linda Paist commented on having eighth graders at the high school.

“I give a lot of credit to the administration of the middle school and the high school for handling the accommodation of the eighth graders with very little disruption for the rest of us,” Paist said. “I didn’t have to move from my classroom.

“I was not impacted by the presence of the eighth graders and even though there was an eighth grade class across the hall from me in the 500 hallway, I never saw the kids.”

By all accounts, behavior was not a problem.

“The kids seemed to really enjoy being here at the high school,” Hunsicker said.

“Students were great - focused, working hard, and helping each other. We are so proud of them,” Peters said.

“Personally, it has been a lot of fun for me to reconnect with past students at the high school even though we missed being at our building’ for sure, missing our counterparts in sixth-seventh grade,” Madouse said.

Assistant Principal Amy Stauffenberg was stationed with the sixth and seventh graders at Weisenberg, where she gained a new appreciation for the staff.

“Everyone was so gracious, and the kids were awesome,” she said. “The staff was worried about making noise in the hallway, but it was like we were always working together. To really work with Jill Berlet was something.”

Susan Inglima, Stauffenberg’s secretary said the Weisenberg staff was very accommodating.

“I was with Amy right in the main office and with the other staff,” she said. “Jean Overstrum worked from a card table so we could have some space.”

“Bill [Dovico] was relocated to the lunch room in the high school office,” his secretary Sandy Horvath said.

She was able to reacquaint herself with high school staff members.

“I knew Ann Redline from when she worked here and a lot of teachers from when my children went to the high school,” she said.

“The learning support teachers were probably affected the most “as they had to circulate and find all their students needing assistance,” Madouse said. “Also related arts teachers floated between Weisenberg and the high school to meet with six to eight students.”

From the first, everyone made the best of the situation.

“Generally, the community was very supportive of the situation,” Dovico said. “Trying to maintain the safety for our students is not something you do every day. Generally, the feedback was very positive.”

Keeping the community informed was key in minimizing problems.

“Because we were at Weisenberg, a lot of the parents chose to pick up their kids,” Inglima said, citing email and social media as being helpful.

Pick up went smoothly even though “we had a double line right out to Route 863 every day.”

Communication was critical in keeping all sectors of the community informed.

“The superintendent sent out a connected message and I’ve sent out emails to our families. Naturally, teachers continually communicated with their students,” Dovico said.

“It reminded us that we are truly a community,” Pam Henderson said, who teaches 12th grade English. “It was kind of fun to see teachers we don’t ordinarily see. It brought the school community together.”

Henderson also credited Superintendent Jennifer Holman for meeting the challenge at the district.

“She was completely transparent right from the beginning,” Henderson said.

“It’s true that in tough times this school community comes together,” Dovico said. “We are a big family.”

The host schools “opened up their classrooms and doors to the staff and even did little luncheons for us.

“Those things made us feel we’re a part of a family. It brought us closer together.”

Thankfully, the length of the school year was not impacted.

“We’re not required to make up the days for the students and we ran in-service days for the teachers, so we’re still going to be able to meet the required time,” Dovico said.

Several other school districts in the area experienced mold issues at the start of the new school year including Pleasant Valley, Salisbury and Tamaqua.

“This building has been here 25 years and this is the first time we had an issue to this extent,” Dovico said.

Damp weather was identified as the culprit in creating the situation in the first place. Air quality will continually be monitored going forward.