Parents Slam School Officials For Lack Of Communication In Wake Of P.S. 67 Mold Discovery

Update, 3 p.m.: P.S. 67 parent coordinator Rhonda Bogaty said she was not aware of mold found at the Little Neck school until classes resumed Jan. 3 — almost three weeks after a report found potentially hazardous Cladosporium fungus in three basement classrooms.

"None of us, including the principal, knew that work was going to be done," Bogaty said.

Bogaty confirmed that workers repaired a section of cement block directly over the three classrooms affected by the water leak and resulting mold. "Whether or not all of the leaks are sealed, I don't know," she said.

On Dec. 6, employee Rhonda Bogaty sent a letter to parents informing them of a "chronic and challenging condition" existing at the Little Neck school. Parents were informed that seeping into basement classrooms could no longer be temporarily patched up and that a permanent fix was an imperative.

Then came the , discovered Dec. 21 on the walls, ceilings and windows of three heavily used classrooms. A hastily-ordered cleanup then commenced, with workers sealing a two-year old water leak and clearing the rooms of dangerous mold during an 11-day winter break — even as a blizzard paralyzed the city for days.

Despite this flurry of activity, two P.S. 67 parents of sickened children said they had not received a single update from school officials on the mold discovery, the clean up that followed or the subsequent reopening of contaminated classrooms.

"Black mold, especially chronic mold caused by these leaks, is a serious matter. So I can't understand why the school hasn't been in contact with parents," said Zafar Kazmi, the grandfather of a sickened P.S. 67 student who attended music lessons in one of the classrooms found to contain Cladosporium, which has been found to cause respiratory problems and in some cases, pneumonia.

For Kazmi's daughter, P.S. 67 parent Ambareen Rizvi, the problem wasn't just a lack of communication.

According to Rizvi, at least one school official dismissed her concerns about her son's health problems — even as investigators hired by the city Department of Education submitted a report finding mold growth that could cause complaints of allergy and respiratory irritation.

"I was shocked by [P.S. 67 assistant principal Barbara] Choit's response to one of my questions. She said, 'We have 1,000 students at this school and 700 of them are fine, so what do you want me to do?'" Rizvi said. "She told me it was probably asthma and not to worry about it."

Choit did not return a call for comment.

Another P.S. 67 parent also said the school's staff was less than responsive to concerns about her son's health in the wake of the mold discovery.

"They were evasive and basically non-responsive," said Michele Zipoli, mother of an 8th grader complaining of respiratory problems, in a phone interview last week.

The allegations regarding lack of communication immediately was accompanied by persistent questions regarding recent work done at the school.

One parent, Rich D'Orta, reported seeing workers in Hazmat suits at P.S. 67 one day after contractor Louis Berger Associates sent a letter dated Dec. 30 certifying the affected classrooms B15, B16 and B17 were mold free and safe for students.

"When I called the school for answers I was told they were addressing the problem," D'Orta wrote earlier this week.

According to a schools spokesman, mold remediation work was completed over the holiday break, along with corrective waterproofing.