LAKEWOOD RANCH — Concerns about possible mold and air quality at Lakewood Ranch High School have led district officials to call in the professionals. Campus faculty, students, and their families anxiously await the industrial hygienists’ findings and say they look forward to hearing the plan for next steps.
Rennie Finck, an AP human geography and financial math teacher, helped bring public attention to the school’s situation last month when, on October 28, she brought the campus concerns directly to the school board.
“I’m here to speak about the mold and air quality issue in our school,” began Finck during public comment. “Nobody should have to choose between their health and their career, yet, under my rheumatologist's guidance, I cannot return until the issue is fully remediated.”
Finck, who has been a teacher for 21 years—fifteen of those with the Manatee County School District, where, in 2024, she was named the Congressional Educator of the Year for her work at Lakewood Ranch High School—explained how the situation in her building had become so serious that it forced her into sick leave.
She further explained that her experience wasn’t hers alone; other teachers and even students were also being negatively impacted by what they believed was an unhealthy indoor environment.
“At least 14 rooms I know of are significantly impacted,” she continued, “This problem has persisted for years. Risk management reports by staff confirm recurring mold, yet response remains superficial… mold is wiped from surfaces, items are discarded, and staff are told that all buildings in Florida have mold.”
As Finck concluded her remarks, she added, “Everyone deserves a safe, healthy environment, and the conditions at Lakewood Ranch High School are serious, and they are a safety concern that must be addressed.”
Click the video below to hear the entirety of Finck’s public comment before the school board during the October 28, 2025, Manatee County School Board meeting.
TBT reached out to Finck after the meeting, and she provided us with documentation from her physician to verify her situation.
Finck has ankylosing spondylitis, an autoimmune disease, and the medications she takes can weaken her immune system. Respiratory symptoms Finck was experiencing due to poor air quality in her classroom had led to an intense AS flare-up, her doctor wrote. He provided a professional recommendation that she “must be relocated immediately to a documented mold-free and clean-air environment.”
Multiple teachers completed risk management reporting forms earlier this year, reporting their health concerns to district officials. Based on public records reviewed by TBT, at least four teachers, other than Finck, reported concerns about mold in May and March.
A May 2 report completed by a teacher in Building 600 included, “Visible mold on the walls in the office/storage room… AC ducts need to be checked and/or cleaned. Wiping walls is a temporary fix.”
The teacher attached multiple photos to her report showing her classroom walls with discoloration and spots, shelving covered with what appeared to be mildew or mold, a warped ceiling tile, and a misshapen, bubbled corkboard.
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A teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School submitted these photos to district officials in May, documenting what she suspected was mold in her classroom.
A teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School submitted these photos to district officials in May, documenting what she suspected was mold in her classroom.
A teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School submitted these photos to district officials in May, documenting what she suspected was mold in her classroom.
A teacher at Lakewood Ranch High School submitted these photos to district officials in May, documenting what she suspected was mold in her classroom.
Several months later, in March, the same teacher submitted another form stating that the problem persisted and noted new respiratory symptoms, including cough and an irritated throat.
“Mold in the air vents, walls, desks… Cleaning the desks, chairs, etc., is a temporary fix as the mold comes back,” she reported.
A separate teacher with a classroom in the same building submitted a form that same month, documenting her own “concerns over air quality” and “respiratory issues.”
Language arts teacher Tracy Gregory also submitted a health concern form in March. Gregory similarly reported concerns about air quality and mold, as well as upper respiratory symptoms.
TBT reached Gregory by phone, who shared that when she first noted problems in her classroom in August 2024, she reported her concerns to the school administration, which told her they would submit the information to the district.
Gregory said that custodial staff cleaned the visible areas of concern, wiping down desks, walls, cabinets, air vents, and other surfaces, but it only provided a temporary fix.
What Gregory described, the reporting of mold, the cleaning of surfaces, and the slow return of visible mold again, matched Finck’s October testimony before the school board.
According to Finck and Gregory, by the time teachers were preparing for students to return to campus for the 2025-2026 school year, numerous classrooms were found with moisture damage and what appeared to be mold. At least two teachers had to dispose of classroom equipment because it was ruined.
“I cleaned most of my room up myself,” Gregory said. “I used vinegar and tea tree oil, and I purchased a dehumidifier with my own money to help control the moisture.”
Gregory admits she grew frustrated with the situation going unresolved and felt the district’s maintenance director was dismissive of teachers’ reports of visible mold.
“He would sign off on our reports that there were ‘no physical signs of mold’ when we could see the visible mold with our own eyes,” she explained.
Teachers and students have alleged that the district’s cost-saving policy with the campus HVAC schedule is at least partially to blame for the recurring problem.
Many have asserted that, in an effort to reduce energy costs, the school’s temperature is frequently set too high, or the AC is turned off entirely on weekends and during extended breaks.
District officials say the school district implements industry standards and best practices when using the HVAC system.
Deputy Superintendent of Operations Willie Clark provided the board with clarification on the district’s HVAC policies during the October 28 meeting.
Clark confirmed that the school AC is turned off “part of the time” over the weekends, cycling on and off, but never off entirely. School climates are monitored by staff, he said, and adjustments to the schedule and temperature are made as needed.
School Board Members Charlie Kennedy and Richard Tatem suggested that the district might need to reevaluate whether current cost-saving strategies involving reduced AC use were worth the risk of increased humidity and/or poor air quality.
Hoping for a Lasting Fix
The Lakewood Ranch High School campus is no stranger to professional mold remediation. Eight years ago this month, the district initiated a nearly half-million-dollar professional mold cleanup at the school.
In 2017, students and teachers were moved from Building 400 while an $80,000 remediation of “visible mold” was undertaken. When Building 400 was finished, an environmental compliance and permitting company inspected the rest of the school and issued a report. That report led to a more extensive cleanup, including the remediation of 23 portables.
Teachers and students say that currently, multiple buildings are showing signs of visible mold, including Buildings 200, 400, 500, 600, and 800.
School District of Manatee County Director of Communication Jamie Carson told TBT that the district takes these reports and concerns seriously.
“The district has engaged an industrial hygienist to conduct a comprehensive environmental study and develop a plan to address any findings,” Carson said.
Following Finck’s public comments at the school board meeting in October, the school district contracted Gallagher Bassett Technical Services. Gallagher is a different company from the one that was hired for the analysis and remediation at the school in 2017.
On October 29th, Lakewood Ranch High School Principal Dustin Dahlquist sent an email to faculty and families acknowledging the expressed health and safety concerns of the campus and the A/C schedule. He offered assurances that the district and school administration were taking the concerns seriously.
The message also highlighted a large project planned for the campus to replace all underground waterlines and piping systems.
District officials say the $6 million project is necessary due to several water line breaks at the school site. They’re hopeful the repairs will help with the ongoing humidity and moisture issues on campus.
Extra portables will be arriving on the campus in the coming weeks to provide flex space for classrooms that need to be moved out of construction areas as the waterline project begins.
On November 5, Principal Dahlquist emailed an update to faculty and staff explaining that industrial hygienists had placed 30 data loggers in various areas around campus.
“These devices are actively recording temperature and relative humidity and will continue to collect data over the next week,” he wrote.
“Additionally, the Operations Team continues to be on site daily to work on equipment repairs… the team has also reached out to the contract remediation team to start working with them.”
District Communications Director further provided that the company conducted a complete physical assessment of all campus buildings and collected nearly 120 air samples for analysis.
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A photo of suspected mold on a guitar, documented by a Lakewood Ranch teacher in October 2025.
A photo of suspected mold on a cello, documented by a Lakewood Ranch teacher in October 2025.
A photo of suspected mold on a classroom air vent, documented by a Lakewood Ranch teacher in October 2025.
A photo of suspected mold on a camera strap, documented by a Lakewood Ranch teacher in October 2025.
Individuals who spoke with TBT for this story agreed that the district’s decision to bring in experts was the right one and a necessary step toward finding real solutions.
For some, those solutions can’t come soon enough.
Finck has been on sick leave for more than four weeks, and her paid time off ended on November 18.
She’s been communicating with school administration and district officials to find a solution that could get her back in a classroom, but so far, says Finck, options have been limited. For now, she remains under a doctor’s order not to return to a classroom with suspected mold.
TBT spoke with a parent of a sophomore at the school who shared that her son, like Finck, is under a doctor’s order to stay off campus as much as possible.
The mother agreed to speak with us about her son’s situation if we didn’t use her or her student’s name in our reporting.
According to the mother, her son began to experience an exacerbation of his asthma symptoms during his freshman year on campus. These symptoms notably declined over the summer break, including a significant decrease in the need for his inhaler.
After returning to campus this year, however, says the mom, her son’s symptoms returned and worsened.
The mother provided TBT with semi-redacted paperwork to verify her son’s medical care and his physician’s recommendation that he be provided accommodations for modified school attendance until the campus ungoes professional testing/evaluation and remediation.
During the same October school board meeting where Finck raised the issue publicly, Lakewood Ranch High School senior Jack Lowrance also addressed school board members on the topic, speaking from a student’s perspective.
Lakewood Ranch parent Samantha Schannault recently told Your Observer that her sophomore student became ill after cleaning suspected mold from musical instruments.
Gregory says she is grateful for her colleague’s decision to speak publicly about the environmental concerns of their campus. She said she believes Finck and Lowrance’s efforts to raise the topic publicly at the school board meeting helped push the needle toward a lasting solution.
The district says a detailed report and recommendations are anticipated from Gallagher Bassett Technical Services before the winter break. District Communications Director added that the information will be made available to staff, students, and families.
“We remain committed to transparency and will keep the community informed as we receive results and implement solutions,” said Carson.
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kat.houston
They turn the AC off nights, weekends and holidays. No wonder there’s mold. It’s a real problem and the District dismisses staff concerns.
Sunday, November 23, 2025 Report this