There's something rotten in Banfield Elementary and it seems to be mold in the carpeting.

The mold, which has infested the carpeting by a cluster of second- and third-grade classrooms at the school, was discussed at Monday's school board work session.

According to Lori Volz, the district's business services director, the carpeting in that part of the building was cleaned June 24 and humid conditions caused the mold to grow in the damp carpet.

The school was alerted to the problem in July when Anita Bissinger, a parent whose children have severe allergies to mold, toured the school shortly after moving here. Bissinger said she walked into that part of the building, smelled the mold and made her children leave the area immediately. However, one of her sons still had an asthma attack because there was so much mold in the air and still is struggling with health problems because of that attack.

Since then, the district has hired the Institute for Environmental Assessment to assess the situation and advise the district on how to fix it.

Based on the IEA's recommendations, the school has relocated the classrooms in that area and will begin removing the carpet and tiling Friday so new tile can be laid.

Volz said the project's completion date is expected to be Oct. 4.

Bissinger said she felt more confident the problem will be solved after talking to the representatives from IEA but added, "my main concern is that the best-laid plans are being followed through, that the funds are there."

However, she said she was pleased the district "was right on top of it, that was amazing."

Superintendent Corrine Johnson said there had been a mold problem at Banfield last year and the district was planning on taking care of it sometime in the near future, but the process was sped up because of Bissinger's concerns.

Class sizes evaluated

After parents voiced their concerns about the district's large fourth-grade classes at the board's last regular meeting, the finance and personnel committees both investigated what should be done about the large class sizes, including if more support staff should be hired.

"Unfortunately the picture at the state is bleak and it's getting bleaker and bleaker each day … we felt that (with the target number of students set at 28 and the cap set at 30) the students are getting the services they need," board member Bev Nordby said.

Therefore, Nordby said, the board plans to keep the target and cap numbers, but let parents who are uncomfortable with their children being in a classroom that large, transfer their children to Southgate, where the fourth-grade classes are smaller. However, parents who choose to transfer their children will have to provide or pay for transportation.

"I'm sure the preferable option is not to move their student to a new school and a new teacher, but it is still an option," Johnson said.

To determine if more support staff should be hired, the district is surveying the fourth- and fifth-grade classes to see how their test scores and classroom performance match.

Sumner's new discipline plan reviewed

Sumner Principal Kim Howard presented the school's new discipline plan to the board.

Howard explained that she talked to faculty and staff members before the school year started about things they would like to see changed at Sumner. The biggest concern was the school's discipline plan needed to be changed.

Howard said she has implemented a "red card discipline system" in which a student receives a red "Stop and Think" ticket for inappropriate behavior and then must spend recess filling out an "I Plan" form in which the student explains why the behavior is wrong.

"So far, it's gone very well. It's been a very effective discipline system," Howard said. "It's something I've done at other schools and it's worked very well. The feedback has been very positive."

Amanda L. Rohde can be reached at 434-2214 or by e-mail at amanda.rohde@austindailyherald.com