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Is the school making this child so ill he cannot be with his classmates?
Lafayette Parent Internet Page
This is an example of a pro-active group of parents who are using the Internet to communicate information to the local parents concerned about ill students and toxic school mold. There is a lawsuit associated with a student allegedly made ill by this mold. The school has been tested by an independent expert, by court order and the sick students have reportedly undergone testing that confirms illness from this school. Visit this site to see what determined, informed parents can do!
go to www.plantationparent.com
Lafayette, LA: Parents want school tested
Parents want school tested
11-year-old has been home-schooled since November
Amanda Harris
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Phil Philliber, 11, does his school work Monday afternoon at the kitchen table with his teacher Robin Laque.
Related articles:
Mold toxin exposure keeps student away from class
Originally Published in The Daily Advertiser, Lafayette, LA
When 11-year-old Phil Philliber began having episodes of violent headaches, vomiting, blacks out and diarrhea, his family began a more than nine-month journey to find the cause of his illness.
After thousands of dollars, hundreds of shots and nine months of testing and waiting for fruitless results, Phil was diagnosed with exposure to mold toxins in late 2006. The diagnosis prompted the Phillibers to test their home and begin a battle to test Plantation Elementary School, where Phil's worst symptoms occurred.
After being denied access for months, the Phillibers were told more than a week ago by the school system that they could test the school but were "stonewalled" when they asked for specific dates to conduct the tests. On Friday, officials with the Lafayette Parish School System said they conducted an air-quality test at Plantation two to four weeks ago that yielded no abnormal mold levels, which was news to the Phillibers. The school would not release the air-quality tests. A call to the school board's attorney was not returned.
A hearing slated for Monday morning was canceled after the school system told the Phillibers they could test the school on a weekend, which the Phillibers plan to do soon.
"We just want to find out if it's there," said Phil's mother, Jeannie Philliber.
"For his health, we need to know where it is," said Phil's father, Barry Philliber.
The Phillibers tested their home for the toxin and came up with nothing. The Phillibers said since Phil has been home - his last day of school was in late November - he hasn't had the violent episodes that plagued him at school, including blacking out in the school's bathroom after vomiting and violent headaches that sent him home three or four days each week.
The family's search to find the cause of Phil's illness ran the gamut of possibilities from lupus to psychiatric problems before the Phillibers visited a Texas doctor who diagnosed Phil as having been exposed to an "incredibly high amount" of a mold toxin called trichothecene. It could be three to five years before Phil is completely detoxified, as his symptoms continue to hold on, the Phillibers said.
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or a lawsuit?
Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:42 pm
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Wouldn't it be better to err on the side of caution and have the school tested for mold? The parents of this sick child have spent lots of money and time to determine the cause of their child's illness and would probably like to have it confirmed, since the school seemed to cause the most problem for him.
This is not to say that every child will have violent symptoms if the school tests positive for the mold, but will help other parents if their children end up with some concerning symptoms. Why reinvent the wheel every time a child gets sick with unexplained symptoms and have parents spend money and time trying to diagnose their child, when, with verification that there is black mold at the school and the parents are informed of this, they can immediately do something to alleviate the child's symptoms?
My guess is that the school board doesn't want to create mass hysteria.
Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:52 am
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One of my family members had to leave their entire life and flee their home because of black mold. It is very serious and no it is not the run-of-the-mill-we-live-in-south-Louisiana mold. I didn't believe it either until I did some research. Maybe, just maybe science has progressed enough to determine environmental factors that have been making people sick for a very long time?????
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 10:42 pm
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There are sick kids at that school, many probably don't have the financial means to go further then that. Trichothecene is a spore released from black mold that can be deadly, cause cancer, respiratory disease and so on. Why are you against the parents having the school tested Professionally? Do you think it's right that the school board hold them from testing the school? and further more, why wouldn't they let. But an $8.00 test (prob what the school uses and they also tell you that you should take a sample of the outside air at the same time) try to prove where you got the air from, start all over requesting for permission to test the school. I know mold is everywhere, I have allergies to mold, but when you have mycrotoxin poisoining-it's a little bit more then the regular mold exposure.
Would you want your kid with held from school and never know where he came in contact with a deadly spore or would you rather test the school since that's where his reactions occurred? If the school does have black mold, I wouldn't let my kid go there-would you? If so, you may as well let your eleven year old play with a loaded gun. If the school doesn't have high amts. of Trichothecene, the kid can back to school and live a normal life again and the family can look elsewhere for the dangerous mold.
Osha has been working on air quality standards for several years now, I don't think they'd be doing this if it weren't dangerous.
What if the mold just started growing around this time? Let's ignore it and see if we get 100's of kids sick and dying, then we'll worry about it.
If it were you're child, what would you do? If it were mine, I'd do what they are doing and make sure every parent knew. I'm sure we'll be hearing of more kids being diagnosed with Trichothecene poisoning if it's in the school. I don't think this is something the dr's normally check for, but I'm sure if my child went there and had been sick for quiet some time, I'd demand my child be tested after finding out it was a possibility.
Without knowledge, we are left clueless.
I think the school board should of jumped as soon as they were asked to allow the parents to have the school tested, they should be as concerned as the parents in protecting the students and staff. They should of made sure the school was clear of this deadly toxin. Homeowners have to completely tear down or gut homes to rid of black mold because of it's toxic spores, yet we shouldn't be concerned? I haven't heard that kids there weren't sick or had no symptoms, have you? I think alot weren't educated and have no idea how serious it can be. Do me one favor and look up Trichothecene on the net, tell me you wouldn't be concerned?
Standards begin somewhere, there has to be a starting point. I hope this is a starting point to force our state to pass air quality standards in public schools. We complain and complain about our poor education levels in Louisiana, but refuse to improve them. Just recently a local school was tutoring their kids who scored highly on testing so that they would test higher the next test, how ironic not to tutor the kids who did poorly on the test. I really think our priorities on education suck tremendously in this state.
Let's all hush and do nothing about any of it, whether it's mold or not and see how we improve.
What would you do in this situation? I think we should all know when our School Board denies request such as this, maybe we could all stand together and start making a difference and improve our education system. Sitting back, ignoring the situations and problems doesn't seem to be working LOL.
I commend this family for standing up and looking out for our children and their education. If it were me and I did nothing and a child or 100's of children became sick or started dying,,,I don't know if I could live with myself. I've heard of many complaints, but this one family is trying to make a difference and standing up for all of us who haven't gone out of our way. I hope for all the students and staff that the school isn't infested with this toxic mold, but if there is a doubt, we as a community need to make sure it's tested and our children are safe.
A Dr. diagnosed this condition, the family testing their own home and found nothing; so where would you test next??? The place the child spends most of his time at and becomes ill the most at, would be the logical place to test, wouldn't it?
Once again, I applaud these people and pray for the child.
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:45 pm
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Easy there my friend. I have kids and I am all for their well being. Listen to my points...
A lot of things can make kids sick. If the black mold levels are that high in these schools, we would have hundreds of kids sick or dying.
The test I was referring to is not the best test method. My poit was if they are concerned, get the eight dollar test and if it shows it is postiive, present it to the board with your proof. Then if the fail to do anything, go get you the best lawyer in town and have at them.
Did they test their vehicles? A vehicles A?C system is a known breeding ground for all sorts of nasty things including mold. That is that musty smell that you get from the vents sometimes. Maybe that is where he is getting exposed to the mold while driving to school.
Now, you do some research and you will discover that black mold is every where and there are no set standards for what is an unsafe level. So if the school is tested, there is a pretty good chance that they will find black mold. Does that mean it is an unsafe level? Nobody knows, but we will surely demand that we spend a LOT of money to correct a problem that may not even really exist.
Where are the hundreds of sick kids from the high levels of black mold?
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:51 pm
Originally published March 13, 2007
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Parents want school tested
11-year-old has been home-schooled since November
Amanda Harris
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Leslie Westbrook/
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Phil Philliber, 11, does his school work Monday afternoon at the kitchen table with his teacher Robin Laque.
Related articles:
Mold toxin exposure keeps student away from class
Originally Published in The Daily Advertiser, Lafayette, LA
When 11-year-old Phil Philliber began having episodes of violent headaches, vomiting, blacks out and diarrhea, his family began a more than nine-month journey to find the cause of his illness.
After thousands of dollars, hundreds of shots and nine months of testing and waiting for fruitless results, Phil was diagnosed with exposure to mold toxins in late 2006. The diagnosis prompted the Phillibers to test their home and begin a battle to test Plantation Elementary School, where Phil's worst symptoms occurred.
After being denied access for months, the Phillibers were told more than a week ago by the school system that they could test the school but were "stonewalled" when they asked for specific dates to conduct the tests. On Friday, officials with the Lafayette Parish School System said they conducted an air-quality test at Plantation two to four weeks ago that yielded no abnormal mold levels, which was news to the Phillibers. The school would not release the air-quality tests. A call to the school board's attorney was not returned.
A hearing slated for Monday morning was canceled after the school system told the Phillibers they could test the school on a weekend, which the Phillibers plan to do soon.
"We just want to find out if it's there," said Phil's mother, Jeannie Philliber.
"For his health, we need to know where it is," said Phil's father, Barry Philliber.
The Phillibers tested their home for the toxin and came up with nothing. The Phillibers said since Phil has been home - his last day of school was in late November - he hasn't had the violent episodes that plagued him at school, including blacking out in the school's bathroom after vomiting and violent headaches that sent him home three or four days each week.
The family's search to find the cause of Phil's illness ran the gamut of possibilities from lupus to psychiatric problems before the Phillibers visited a Texas doctor who diagnosed Phil as having been exposed to an "incredibly high amount" of a mold toxin called trichothecene. It could be three to five years before Phil is completely detoxified, as his symptoms continue to hold on, the Phillibers said.
Post a Comment View All Comments
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
or a lawsuit?
Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:42 pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wouldn't it be better to err on the side of caution and have the school tested for mold? The parents of this sick child have spent lots of money and time to determine the cause of their child's illness and would probably like to have it confirmed, since the school seemed to cause the most problem for him.
This is not to say that every child will have violent symptoms if the school tests positive for the mold, but will help other parents if their children end up with some concerning symptoms. Why reinvent the wheel every time a child gets sick with unexplained symptoms and have parents spend money and time trying to diagnose their child, when, with verification that there is black mold at the school and the parents are informed of this, they can immediately do something to alleviate the child's symptoms?
My guess is that the school board doesn't want to create mass hysteria.
Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:52 am
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
One of my family members had to leave their entire life and flee their home because of black mold. It is very serious and no it is not the run-of-the-mill-we-live-in-south-Louisiana mold. I didn't believe it either until I did some research. Maybe, just maybe science has progressed enough to determine environmental factors that have been making people sick for a very long time?????
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 10:42 pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are sick kids at that school, many probably don't have the financial means to go further then that. Trichothecene is a spore released from black mold that can be deadly, cause cancer, respiratory disease and so on. Why are you against the parents having the school tested Professionally? Do you think it's right that the school board hold them from testing the school? and further more, why wouldn't they let. But an $8.00 test (prob what the school uses and they also tell you that you should take a sample of the outside air at the same time) try to prove where you got the air from, start all over requesting for permission to test the school. I know mold is everywhere, I have allergies to mold, but when you have mycrotoxin poisoining-it's a little bit more then the regular mold exposure.
Would you want your kid with held from school and never know where he came in contact with a deadly spore or would you rather test the school since that's where his reactions occurred? If the school does have black mold, I wouldn't let my kid go there-would you? If so, you may as well let your eleven year old play with a loaded gun. If the school doesn't have high amts. of Trichothecene, the kid can back to school and live a normal life again and the family can look elsewhere for the dangerous mold.
Osha has been working on air quality standards for several years now, I don't think they'd be doing this if it weren't dangerous.
What if the mold just started growing around this time? Let's ignore it and see if we get 100's of kids sick and dying, then we'll worry about it.
If it were you're child, what would you do? If it were mine, I'd do what they are doing and make sure every parent knew. I'm sure we'll be hearing of more kids being diagnosed with Trichothecene poisoning if it's in the school. I don't think this is something the dr's normally check for, but I'm sure if my child went there and had been sick for quiet some time, I'd demand my child be tested after finding out it was a possibility.
Without knowledge, we are left clueless.
I think the school board should of jumped as soon as they were asked to allow the parents to have the school tested, they should be as concerned as the parents in protecting the students and staff. They should of made sure the school was clear of this deadly toxin. Homeowners have to completely tear down or gut homes to rid of black mold because of it's toxic spores, yet we shouldn't be concerned? I haven't heard that kids there weren't sick or had no symptoms, have you? I think alot weren't educated and have no idea how serious it can be. Do me one favor and look up Trichothecene on the net, tell me you wouldn't be concerned?
Standards begin somewhere, there has to be a starting point. I hope this is a starting point to force our state to pass air quality standards in public schools. We complain and complain about our poor education levels in Louisiana, but refuse to improve them. Just recently a local school was tutoring their kids who scored highly on testing so that they would test higher the next test, how ironic not to tutor the kids who did poorly on the test. I really think our priorities on education suck tremendously in this state.
Let's all hush and do nothing about any of it, whether it's mold or not and see how we improve.
What would you do in this situation? I think we should all know when our School Board denies request such as this, maybe we could all stand together and start making a difference and improve our education system. Sitting back, ignoring the situations and problems doesn't seem to be working LOL.
I commend this family for standing up and looking out for our children and their education. If it were me and I did nothing and a child or 100's of children became sick or started dying,,,I don't know if I could live with myself. I've heard of many complaints, but this one family is trying to make a difference and standing up for all of us who haven't gone out of our way. I hope for all the students and staff that the school isn't infested with this toxic mold, but if there is a doubt, we as a community need to make sure it's tested and our children are safe.
A Dr. diagnosed this condition, the family testing their own home and found nothing; so where would you test next??? The place the child spends most of his time at and becomes ill the most at, would be the logical place to test, wouldn't it?
Once again, I applaud these people and pray for the child.
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:45 pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Easy there my friend. I have kids and I am all for their well being. Listen to my points...
A lot of things can make kids sick. If the black mold levels are that high in these schools, we would have hundreds of kids sick or dying.
The test I was referring to is not the best test method. My poit was if they are concerned, get the eight dollar test and if it shows it is postiive, present it to the board with your proof. Then if the fail to do anything, go get you the best lawyer in town and have at them.
Did they test their vehicles? A vehicles A?C system is a known breeding ground for all sorts of nasty things including mold. That is that musty smell that you get from the vents sometimes. Maybe that is where he is getting exposed to the mold while driving to school.
Now, you do some research and you will discover that black mold is every where and there are no set standards for what is an unsafe level. So if the school is tested, there is a pretty good chance that they will find black mold. Does that mean it is an unsafe level? Nobody knows, but we will surely demand that we spend a LOT of money to correct a problem that may not even really exist.
Where are the hundreds of sick kids from the high levels of black mold?
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:51 pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Post a Comment View All Comments
Originally published March 13, 2007
Parents offered information today about toxic mold
Parents offered information today about toxic mold Exper
http://www.theadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070506/NEWS01/705060347/1002
Parents offered information today about toxic mold
Expert in hazardous environmental sites will conduct meeting
Amanda Harris
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
An informational meeting for parents of Plantation Elementary School students is set for 3 p.m. today at the Holiday Inn on the Evangeline Thruway to discuss mold and its effects.
A potentially harmful mold was found on the Kaliste Saloom Road campus March 31, and at least seven students have tested positive for exposure to a toxin that the kind of mold found at Plantation can produce called trichothecene. The test used on the children is not FDA-approved.
An expert in the field, Linda K. May, will conduct the meeting to help parents find answers. May is an accredited instructor of the OSHA Training Institute and is certified by the Environmental Protection Agency.
She has been dealing with hazardous environment sites for more than 30 years. She spoke briefly to the school board Wednesday night and offered her services.
The school district has test results from a March 31 testing that show one of the three rooms tested had high levels of Stachybotrys mold, which is referred to often as black mold or toxic mold.
The school cleaned the room where Stachybotrys was found, retested it and found no mold in the air. However, the district never found the source of the mold.
At the urging of parents, the school district later performed campuswide tests, cleaned and then performed more tests. The results of the tests before and after cleaning have not been received by the district.
Questions about mold began in December when the parents of a Plantation student, the Phillibers, contacted the district to inform them their son tested positive for a toxin produced by mold called trichothecene. He had been sick since November.
The Phillibers tested their home and when they found no unusual levels of mold in their home asked to test the campus.
In February, after making no headway to gain access to pay for and conduct tests on campus, the Phillibers filed suit to test the school.
Before their hearing, the district told the Phillibers they could test the campus. They and the district tested three rooms March 31.
The Phillibers have not released their test results. However, their attorney has said they found high levels of Stachybotrys in the band room, which is the same room where the district found the mold.
Other parents have said their children have symptoms ranging from vomiting and diarrhea to blurry vision and headaches along with sore throats.
Experts disagree about some of the effects of mold on humans leaving parents with questions about how to care for their children.
Related Stories Through May 9, 2007
These are some of the related stories for Lafayette, Louisiana's school mold problems...from Google Search on May 9, 2007:
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