Westwood Elementary confirmed safe to return Aug. 24

Westwood Elementary students will return to class Aug. 24 after Friendswood ISD confirmed the campus meets air quality standards, according to an Aug. 18 release from the district.

Staff may return to campus as early as Aug. 19, the release states.

What you need to know

The district received confirmation from a third-party environmental consulting firm at SETX Environmental Inc. that all 26 areas tested at Westwood Elementary met air quality standards.

Kinder Camp and Meet the Teacher will not be rescheduled, according to the release.

The district calendar includes enough instructional minutes to account for two of the four missed school days without adding instructional days, the release states.

If the board of trustees approves the application at its Aug. 24 meeting, district officials will apply to the Texas Education Agency for a waiver. If approved by TEA, students will not be required to make up the remaining two days, according to the release.

In case you missed it

The district previously reported increased moisture and visible surface mold in parts of the building. Air and surface testing conducted by an environmental consultant in July found elevated mold levels but did not identify black mold.

FISD’s board of trustees met Aug. 5 and approved emergency remediation measures, allowing Superintendent Thad Roher to oversee agreements and expenses needed to restore the campus to safe occupancy, according to district documents.

The cost of the remediation measures is currently unknown.