Dozens of Chicago Schools Underwent Summer Asbestos Removal

In preparation for the opening of the school year, the city of Chicago removed asbestos from 88 schools in the city’s vast school district, confirming that the schools would be safe for students to attend.

According to a report on WBEZ Radio, the district is closing 50 schools this year, making it extra important to address asbestos removal in the schools that would be absorbing scores of new students. The Public Building Commission (PBC) had reported that the situation would be addressed during the summer, and it would appear that the district was successful in their endeavor to reach all of the schools that had an issue. Nevertheless, there was concern from parents and school workers once the word was out about the abatement.

“I would tell people who are not routinely involved in renovation that this in fact is very routine, very regulated and it’s not something that should cause any concern,” said Erin Lavin, executive director of the PBC of Chicago.

However, some parents and even school administrators claim that they knew nothing about the asbestos removal that took place this summer. Jeanette Taylor, president of the Local School Council at Mollison Elementary School, was alarmed by the goings-on and uncomfortable with the fact that parents, teachers, and staff were not informed.

“Somebody’s got to answer to this,” said Taylor, who has two children at Mollison and a mother who works at the school. “To me, this is hidden. Give parents the respect to say I need to take my kid out or is there somewhere else my kid [could] be served.”

“This is wrong. And then you’re going to throw more kids in the building,” she added, noting that Mollison is the receiving school for kids who used to attend Overton, one of the facilities that is closing.

“If there’s an issue with asbestos in public buildings,” added Jitu Brown, educational organizer with the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization, “then there should be a public process in which we know these are the buildings that have an asbestos problem. Here is the plan to address these buildings and here is the timeline.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) passed laws decades ago that demand schools have a management plan in place to protect those inside from being exposed to the toxic mineral, which can cause mesothelioma cancer if inhaled. The Asbestos in Schools laws require that building managers have a listing of all places where asbestos is located and that someone onsite is trained to handle asbestos emergencies.

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