Dear Carnage Parent(s) and community members,  

We want to bring to your attention a growing issue with the school building that could impact the safety and health of our children and staff. This alert is not meant to create alarm but rather drive an organized effort to bring about a positive change within the school community. 

Our school has several incredible academic programs that allow students to graduate middle school with high school credits, has several student organizations that go to nationals every year, and have many wonderful community members within our ever growing PTSA from several surrounding areas:  Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, Cary, West Cary, Morrisville, Garner, and Raleigh. 

The Fred J Carnage Magnet Middle School  building was built in 1964, with a few additions. In May 2021,  the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) discovered evidence of water damage, a leak ,and a terrible smell of sewage in the PTSA closet. On July 10th, the PTSA found the PTSA closet smelled of mildew or mold, and had a white substance growing in portions of the PTSA closet.  Concerned parents and the Interim president sent a request for an inspection and other issues that had been noticed in our school building sent to the district on July 12th.  The district sent a response in regards to most of the issues, yet still many critical items need to be addressed fully.  A new letter was sent on August 8th, 2021 to the District from the PTSA regarding more concerns.   

With students and staff returning to the school on August 23rd, now this has become a pressing issue.  Here are the concerns that still need to be addressed at this time:

 1. HVAC Issues: Temperature control in classrooms has been a huge issue with rooms being freezing cold or too hot creating an uncomfortable environment for teachers and students to work. It is noted that due to humidity accumulating in the air has caused mold/mildew in a few classrooms and closets which could cause potential health issues. We need a third party certification that there is no mold/bacteria that are hazardous to health in the HVAC system prior to the students and staff returning to the school on August 23, 2021. HVAC issue is a repeated finding in an inspection report by department of Environment Health and Safety over last 2 years.
2. Mold issues: It has been noted that 6 classrooms have been treated for mold and an additional 5 classrooms were found to have mold growing on the carpets on Monday, August 16th, 2021. We need a third party certification to show the ENTIRE school building is tested for mold and ensure no presence of mold in all of the classrooms including the replacement of  57 year old carpets in the building with tile to mitigate any future mold issues.  Also test the white substance in the PTSA closet for mold, asbestos, and any hazardous materials.
3. Need for renovations: Few leaks have been fixed but new leaks continue to surface which need to be addressed to completely fix the problem without piecemealing it. We need to have a plan provided for future renovation or replacement of our buildings.  
The Carnage PTSA Committee has found that Esser grants available to the Wake County District available for Carnage Magnet MS to improve the air quality which would resolve Issue #1.  The committee will be approaching the superintendent with all of the issues outlined above as well as a request to provide a portion of the Esser Grants to resolve these pressing issues immediately.  This is a matter of serious concern to the students and staff well being and potential health hazard that could cause severe respiratory issues for all populations and especially one with pre-existing conditions like asthma.  

What Can You Do?

We need parent support. Please sign this petition and either email or call Superintendent Cathy Moore:   

Cathy Moore(919) 431-7400

AskTheSuperintendent@wcpss.net

https://www.wcpss.net/Page/264 

Please sign this petition telling Cathy Moore that resolving these above listed issues needs to be a top priority to ensure the safety of our children and our staff. This building has taken care of thousands of students and staff over the last 57 years. It’s time Carnage Magnet MS is cared for. 

If you need additional information,  please email carnageptsapresident@gmail.com.

Find more information on these issues @ https://carnagemiddleptsa.weebly.com/carnage-building-issues.html

Thank you for your support,

Carnage PTSA