Joslyn Bogner, senior, described it as putrid and distracting.
“It’s very disruptive and potentially hazardous,” Bogner said.
An odor has been present in the building since school started, growing in intensity.
“The smell is comparable to rotten eggs or cat litter,” Bogner said.
For the past month, MHS has had a sewer blockage that has led to an odor, disrupting the routine of students and staff. The odor is especially strong on the third floor of the science classes.
As the issue lingers, students and staff have wondered how to bring the learning environment back to normal.
“It’s been a month since it’s been happening and apparently it’s only ever gotten worse,” Bogner said. “They should find out what the deal is, because clearly, people have complained about it.”’
Bogner is researching and investigating the school odor for a prerequisite for the Individual Gold Award in Girl Scouts. The project is called Think Like a Citizen Scientist.
“We identify a problem in our community, gather data and do some small research to try and see if we can aid that issue,” Bogner said.
Bogner said she had just begun the project.
Associate Principal Dr. Mike Wegener said the odor is caused by a blockage of neutralization agents within the drainage system of the science classrooms. The drains need to be cleaned because the odor builds up in the system, releasing under the roof and diffusing in the air conditioning.
“It’s specific to certain days in which the air conditioning is and is not utilized,” Dr. Wegener said.
Wegener said he has noticed the foul odor within the science and language arts wings of the building.
“My office is on the side, so when it’s going on, my office is impacted by it,” Dr. Wegener said.
A company has been contracted to clean the drainage system at the beginning of October when students and staff are not in the building.
Laura Coverstone, language arts teacher, has noticed the smell within her classroom.
“When I arrive in the morning, it smells like sewage or a porta-potty, sometimes it smells like a burning porta-potty,” Coverstone said.
Coverstone said the smell is strongest in the morning and it dissipates as time goes on.
She and other classes were given the opportunity to move to the library if the odor is particularly bad. Coverstone has taken them up on that offer and has also arranged to move to other classrooms if the smell hasn’t gone away by her 3rd or 4th hours.
“It’s definitely caused some symptoms for students and teachers, like headaches, nausea, discomfort and trouble concentrating,” Coverstone said.
