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NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

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DustStirs Worry in Tour ofa Shuttered School By ROBERT F. WORTH tar. face dirt, she added. When a group of teachers from the “The feeling was, they weren’t be­ Neil Feldscher, a spokesman for High School of Economics and Fi­ ing up front, and it makes you won­ Emteque Coip., the environmental nance went back to tour their shut­ der what else wasn’t done,” Mr. firm hired by the school’s parent- tered school next to the World Trade Shaffner said. teacher association, said he conduct­ Center site, city officials assured Last night more than 100 students, ed tests in the building yesterday but them that it had been thoroughly teachers, parents, and officials from had not collected enough information cleaned. The building, which is closer the New York City Board of Educa­ to make a final judgment than any other school to ground zero, tion met at the school, at 100 Trinity Students at the school, which was has been closed since the terrorist Place, to discuss safety issues and founded in 1993 and specializes in attacks and is scheduled to reopen hear from environmental experts. preparing students for careers in fi­ Bernard Orlan, the board’s direc­ nance, have been sharing space at Jan. 30. tor for health and safety, said the Norman Thomas High School, at But as the teachers began walking dust remaining in the school is not a the halls on Tuesday, they found a safety hazard. The building, which 33rd Street and Park Avenue, since thick layer of dust in the faculty was occupied by the city’s Office of Sept. 11. But some parrats have lounge and in one of the elevators. Emergency Management in the moved their children to other Worried that the dust might be toxic, months after the Sept. 11 attacks, schools. The enrollment at Econom­ a union official who accompanied was given a thorough environmental ics and Finance is now 628, about 100 them promptly declared the building cleaning in December and January. less than it was at the start of the unsafe, and now many teachers and he said. The air was then tested school year, Ms. Feinberg said. parents say they will not return until inside and outside the building and Altogether, five school buildings in they are sure that the building has found to be safe. The problem, he the area remain closed, with their been adequately cleaned. said, arose when repairs were made students attending classes else­ “We listened for two hours while to the school’s ventilation system where: the High School of Econom­ they told us the place was spotless,” and old but harmless dust spread ics and Finance and the High School said Scott Shaffner, one of the teach­ into the air. for Leadership and Public Service at ers who was present on the tour, “Basically the building is dirty but 90 Trinity Place, which are sched­ organized by the United Federation not environmentally unsafe,” said uled to reopen Jan. 30, and Public of Teachers. “Then 1 touched the Margie Feinberg, a spokeswoman Schools 89, 234 and 150, which are ceiling duct of one of the elevators, for the Board of Education. It is scheduled to reopen Feb. 4, Ms. Fein­ and my hand came but black — like being cleaned now to eliminate sur­ berg said.

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