By GvilleTX Newsroom
Edison Elementary students and staff began the 2026-27 school year Wednesday, Aug. 19, away from their Gainesville campus while crews work on a mold problem, according to Gainesville ISD. For families, the change means the youngest Edison grades are beginning classes at First Baptist Church, the Boys & Girls Club and Chalmers Elementary instead of at Edison.
GISD said Aug. 14 that test results for Edison showed 37 of 45 classrooms with signs of mold activity and air-quality concerns. The district said repairs and reconstruction for additional affected rooms could take up to a month, and it had asked its environmental team to speed the job with night and weekend crews.
The district assigned pre-kindergarten to First Baptist Church Youth Center, kindergarten initially to the Boys & Girls Club, first grade to First Baptist Church's old building, and SPED Life Skills to Chalmers Elementary. GISD said students would keep learning in structured temporary locations and that Chartwells K12 would provide breakfast and lunch.
On Aug. 21, GISD announced kindergarten would move to First Baptist Church beginning Monday, Aug. 24. The district said First Baptist offered space and an environment that district officials believed would better support kindergarten students, teachers and families after the first days of relocation.
The campus closure began with an Aug. 5 GISD notice that said Edison would close beginning Aug. 6 while the rest of the classrooms were assessed, results were reviewed and any needed remediation was completed. GISD said initial indoor-air-quality testing found Aspergillus/Penicillium and Stachybotrys, which the district described as commonly called black mold. By Aug. 11, GISD said its first set of affected classrooms had completed remediation and passed follow-up testing, while tests from the rest of the building were still pending.
GISD has described the work at Edison as cleaning HVAC ductwork, replacing impacted carpet, addressing drywall and wallpaper, and requiring post-remediation testing before rooms go back into service. The district also said it planned to seek a Texas Education Agency waiver for instructional time missed at the start of the closure.
Federal guidance puts the focus on moisture control and verification after cleanup. The Environmental Protection Agency says indoor mold growth can be controlled by controlling moisture and that no EPA or other federal threshold has been set for mold or mold spores, though pre- and post-remediation sampling can help evaluate whether work was effective. CDC/NIOSH guidance says proper remediation includes drying or removing wet materials, preventing more water from entering a building, containment and monitoring of repairs.
Public records show other school districts have faced similar operations questions when mold affected campuses. Hays CISD's November 2023 board agenda included items on staff compensation tied to Hemphill Elementary's temporary closure for Aspergillus/Penicillium remediation and ratifying building repair expenses. Friendswood ISD's Aug. 5 emergency meeting minutes listed mold at Westwood Elementary and an emergency purchasing resolution; the district later said qualified third-party environmental professionals verbally confirmed tested areas met air-quality standards, allowing Westwood to set its first day for Aug. 24.
_Editor's note: Everyone charged with a crime is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law._
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