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Parent Jeanne Black, of Darlington, WI, describes her daughter's suffering in a Darlington school, to the WI State Senate.
I would like to take a moment and thank all of you who have co-sponsored Senate Bill 325 on Indoor Air Quality in our public schools.
My name is Jeanne Black, and this is my daughter Jade Black, who is now a freshman in a Wisconsin Public High School. I am here to talk on behalf of all students in Wisconsin Public Schools.
To give you an idea of what many of our children are going through, it makes sense to review the symptoms associated with Sick Building Syndrome.
What are some of the symptoms associated with Sick Building Syndrome?
Some of the symptoms: breathing problems, Irritable Bowl Syndrome, nausea, diarrhea, sharp abdominal pains, food allergies, memory loss, vision problems, burning and red eyes, anxiety/depression, heart palpitations, confusion, chronic fatigue, nose bleeds, chronic coughing, bruising easily, rashes on the face, and migraines.
We experienced all of these.
I have talked to and met with over 30 people concerning the matter of air quality in our schools. I have met with and worked with administration of schools, principals, cleaning staffs, teachers, hygienists, state health, local health, insurance companies, Dept of Commerce, engineers, doctors, cancer research specialists, and the Dept. of Public Instruction. Representatives from some of these departments stated that with no laws and no regulations we can not enforce changes but they can only recommend changes. Recommendations and suggestions WILL NOT prevent the illnesses my family and many others have and currently are experiencing.
Recommendations and guidelines are not enough, we need enforcement! Senate Bill 325 is a good start.
My family and I have experienced the ill effects that many other children and their families have experienced and are currently experiencing stemming from the problems associated with indoor air quality from molds, extraneous chemical contamination, and the lack of adequate air exchange coming into our schools in this state.
As a direct result of these ill effects plaguing our schools, my child, Jade Black, was forced to leave her school. After countless doctor visits, doctors advised my family that the only way to ensure the health of my child was to remove Jade from the environment completely for her own safety. This was difficult, for this was a school we were so very proud of in the past.
We have now entered a pro-active school, without these life-threatening problems and all Jade’s symptoms are gone. No more inhalers and $350.00 worth of meds a month. No allergic reactions so severe they become life threatening. My child or any child in the state of WI should not have to take inhalers and medication just to get through school. The shame is, that many children do have to carry inhalers and take medications, just to make it through the day of classes.
The school we are in now uses “ Tools for Schools” Federal Guidelines for indoor air quality. We understand that these are guidelines and suggestions, NOT LAW. This school is air-conditioned and very pro-active. As an example due to allergies to latex there are signs on every entrance to the building NO LATEX BEYOND THIS POINT.
Health of their students and staff is their highest priority and as a result they have been ranked in the upper level of scholastic achievement. This school sets an example of what all our public schools in Wi should be practicing.
We thank them for their efforts and for setting an example to which all Wisconsin schools should strive to achieve.
Without regulations and laws in Wisconsin on this issue, from our experience, it gives public schools a chance to deny, cover up, threaten jobs and simply not address the issue, while our children are inhaling toxic air on a daily basis. There are countless laws out there that regulate safety in our schools but we must continue to address each new problem and mandate the safety of our schools at all costs. Breathing toxic air is proven to be a health hazard and some chemicals present in our schools can even be cancer causing.
Toxic cleaning chemicals are also a huge problem along with mold exposure. Some schools are using cleaning chemicals from chalkboard cleaners that smell so bad they are sealed in plastic bags. These same cleaning chemicals are so strong they actually eat thru the plastic bags. Floor cleaners are also a huge problem.
Senator Hillary Clinton has addressed this issue in her Chemical Safety Act introduced in July of 2005. I have included this in your handouts for you to look over.
After realizing that there was a flaw in our system and my families experience of it first hand, my family and I went to meet with State Representative Steve Freese's office and gave a presentation on laws we would like to see put in place in our state. Then the wheels started rolling. I also wanted to meet with the federal end so I went to U.S.
Senator Feingolds office. Their office connected me to their Washington office, I was advised that, yes, there are some ideas of federal funding also being asked for and some legislation and ideas being tossed around.
I can not tell you how helpful all of these officials have been in looking into this matter. They all have been wonderful.
Without laws and regulations, children like Jade are forced out of public school system and lost. There is nothing to protect them. When we send our children out the door in the morning, we entrust their care to the administration of public schools. Please make schools accountable, educate them on Sick Building Syndrome, educate maintenance staff to understand the hazards of chemical exposure, and make school boards liable for the safety of our children and let every student, employee and person who walks through the hallways breath clean air in every public school in Wisconsin and in the United States.
It is every child’s right on the great state of Wisconsin to breathe clean air. They are our future.
Sick Building Syndrome is a serious problem in our schools today, nation wide. We have seen first hand what Sick Building Syndrome can do to a young child, by standing by my daughter as she was held hostage by this syndrome.
Only 6 months after being taken out of the environment the dairy allergy is gone along with all other sick building symptoms.
We are very fortunate to have excellent health insurance, a luxury many other families do not have. These medications can be very costly.
We now have our healthy, intelligent, very happy daughter back again. I commend her for her courage.
I feel Bill 325 is a good start to fixing the problems of our public schools, but I would like to also see included penalties if these laws are not met. Either by monetary fines or through civil and criminal liability.
Without some type of penalties this law will not help the growing health concern.
If you can not breathe you can not learn. Every child in the great state of Wisconsin and in the U.S. has the right to breathe clean air.
There is only one solution to this situation. We must remove the danger entirely. Laws must be implemented and enforced to protect our children, at all costs.
I would like to volunteer my time to help be on the environmental task force of Senate Bill 325.
Thank you for giving me this privilege to speak on behalf of all students in our public schools in Wisconsin.
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