CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Access behind the Audio and Production room doors in the Fine Arts Center at Del Mar College Heritage Campus has been restricted due to concerns of mold and HVAC unit leak issues.
"I’ve been sitting here, apparently in mold and it felt like everybody knew about it, except me," Digital Media, Radio and Television Instructor Rachel Jennische said.
A gap in communication is what it seemed Jennische experienced after she first realized the issue of mold and HVAC unit issues in her office - room 163D. The place has since been restricted and is being worked on by contractors as of Wednesday morning.
“I didn’t know that I had a leak in my radio studio. So I get up to go check it out and there’s just water pouring from the ceiling. Then we have these soundproofing tiles that were actually falling from the wall," Jennische said.
It was back in January, when Jennische made a complaint of her discovery to the Fine Arts Center building manager. Immediately after, Jennische told Neighborhood News reporter Alexis Scott that the building manager took photos and videos and notified the associate director of maintenance about the concerns.
After that, no updates were provided to Jennische about what was going on.
It wasn’t until April that Jennische saw caution tape and signs near her office that read ‘Do Not Enter.'
“So, I had been working in that space. In the summer, it actually was going to come install some computers for me. The person texted me and he’s like ‘Hey I finished installing everything except this area.' Which is the area right outside my office. He says ‘It’s full of mold.’ Well, why do you know that and I don’t know that," Jennische said.
That was in July. Jennische added that her Audio and Production classes were moved to other rooms within the facility.
"We do have older parts in the building," Jennische told Scott. "I don't want to say it's something we have to deal with, but we do. But, there seems to be some sort of lack of communication that they’re even working on anything and there seems to be a lack of preventing mold growth.
Her office and classroom are not the only spaces in the Fine Arts Center that have this problem.
Scott was notified the Art and Drama Department shut down the Barlett Theater back in September 2023 due to water leaks that caused the floor to disintegrate and grow mold. As of October 2024, the theater is still closed with a warning on the outside of the door.
The college's Vice President of Facilities, John Strybos, said once his team is notified of any facility issues, they begin working to fix it immediately. When asked about when Strybros was made aware of the mold growth, he did not recall the date.
“I don’t remember a specific date about a specific issue. We have a lot of issues here," Strybos said. "Some of the complaints are made and they just have to go through the system. So while it may have been identified several months ago, we get them addressed as soon as we can.”
Strybos told Scott that a third party consultant came in, conducted a tape test and confirmed the impacted rooms, in fact, did have mold. This is used to examine the amount of mold infestation on a surface. The test tape is then placed under a microscope and analyzed to determine whether the surface is safe or saturated with mold.
Del Mar College reiterated the tape test did not identify the specimen as black mold.
"They put up a protective barrier so they can do the work and the mold doesn’t get out of the space, so they’re cleaning the mold now.”
According to writer, Bill Eaves, with campus publication, Foghorn News, a medical health and safety publication confirmed the mold is consistent with a fungus that causes fungal eye infections and possible respiratory issues in humans.
Data also attributed to the World Health Organization and other health agencies also confirm the severity of health issues humans can experience when exposed to emerging pathogens.
“This particular issue is going to be less than $50,000, when we add all the cost together. Yes, there’s going to be mold, there’s going to be HVAC issues, but we have a plan in place to address those issues," Strybos said.
He also mentioned the college has over $2 million of funding for deferred maintenance budgeted in the next fiscal year.
As of now, Jennische said she has been notified of all updates related to her office and the classrooms impacted by the mold and HVAC leaks.
So far, there's no word on when contractors will be done cleaning up the mold and fixing the inoperable HVAC units.
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