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Several Michigan parents, a former principal and even a young student all expressed their frustration earlier this month to the Okemos Public Schools Board of Education over the district鈥檚 handling of lead-contaminated water in one of their buildings, although it appears that complaints from staff members had been building for months.

鈥淭he grievance is in reference to the many documented and discussed building condition concerns faced by the staff (and students) at OPM in the areas of safety, security, communication, and essential maintenance,鈥� stated an Oct. 6 formal grievance filed by the Okemos Education Association, the union representing the district鈥檚 teachers.

Initial water testing at the Okemos Public Montessori (OPM) building, located at 4406 Okemos Road in Meridian Township, discovered lead levels of 5 parts per billion (ppb) in one location and another of 9 ppb in another. However, follow up testing on Dec. 5 confirmed that one room in the building tested at 49 ppb.

While Michigan鈥檚 action level for lead is 15 ppb, MDHHS that no level of lead is considered safe for drinking water. Exposure to lead can cause brain and kidney damage, behavioral problems and even death, among a litany of other health problems.

The district said it has followed the recommendations of both the MDHHS and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), including closing down the affected fixtures and posting 鈥渘ot for drinking鈥� signs there, replacing faucet aerators, continually flushing the system and providing filtered water at bottle filling stations.

Okemos Public Schools is in an affluent suburb of Lansing. According to the , the median household income in Okemos is $86,354, which is more than $20,000 above the state median of $63,202. The district, meanwhile, receives $13,465 in per-pupil funding, more than $500 above the state average of $12,816, according to the latest from the Michigan Department of Education.

At the Dec. 11 school board meeting, the first since the Michigan Advance on the discovery last week, board members heard directly from parents about their concerns, who complained about a lack of transparency in how the contamination was communicated as well as the steps they need to take to know if that contamination affected their child.

鈥淚 feel really unheard and angry at the district and their answer to the issue about the water in the building, telling kids not to drink the water. Come on, give me 鈥︹�� said Kelly McCarty, the mother of two students at OPM, her voice breaking with emotion. 鈥淚鈥檓 not making sense because I鈥檓 really upset. Transparency. The emails that we鈥檝e been getting are saying that they鈥檙e transparent, but they鈥檙e not. I don鈥檛 think people in the community realize that there are classrooms that tested in the 40 parts per billion with lead in the water. We鈥檙e talking about higher than Flint levels and, 鈥極h, don鈥檛 drink that water. You鈥檙e fine.鈥� They were telling us that getting our kids tested was on us If we wanted to. Not, 鈥榊ou should get your kid tested.鈥� No, that鈥檚 not good enough for me.鈥�

That issue, whether or not OPM students should get their blood tested to determine what level, if any, of lead contamination they might have received, remains in dispute between what the district has communicated to parents and what the Ingham County Health Department (ICHD) said it recommended.

Dr. Nike Shoyinka, ICHD鈥檚 chief medical health officer, told the Advance this month that the department did pass along a list of recommendations to the district that included testing.

鈥淪tudents within the classrooms where elevated lead levels were detected in their faucets should get tested, and we have provided them with resources,鈥� she said. 鈥淓very family who had a child in those classrooms was contacted directly by the school as far as we know and told that there were elevated levels. They should be in contact with their pediatrician and /or come to the health department. 鈥楬ere are resources for lead testing.鈥� That is how it was put to them.鈥�

However, that was a change from earlier in the week when ICHD Health Communications Specialist Victoria Coykendall said the department had said students 鈥渃ould鈥� get tested.

When asked about the discrepancy, both Coykendall and Shoyinka said the confusion was whether or not the recommendation applied to all students in the building, or only those students in rooms where elevated lead levels were discovered.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no school-wide recommendation that everyone should get tested,鈥� said Coykendall. 鈥淚t was on a classroom-by-classroom basis. What we said was that there鈥檚 no indication for every child in the whole school. But within those classes where there were elevated levels, and at the time that we got involved with this, the school had already taken those measures.

鈥淪o by the time we were talking to them, they had already started contacting them. So there was never, 鈥榊our students should do this, this is what you should do,鈥� because they had already done it,鈥� Coykendall said. So we are in full agreement of what their response was with regards to the students within those classes.鈥�

Okemos Public Schools Communications Specialist Shannon Beczkiewicz told the Advance that the district nurse did make calls to the families in the one room that tests showed the highest level of lead, known as the Paw Paw Room.

鈥淪tudents in classrooms that tested above the 5 ppb level for action received a letter from Superintendent John Hood with more information specific to that room,鈥� she said.

But a from Hood to the Paw Paw room parents dated Nov. 28 makes no mention about students getting tested. At that time, the room tested at 38 ppb. A follow-up communication on Dec. 7 stated that the room had tested at 49 ppb. It also made no mention of students getting tested for lead contamination.

To that point, Beczkiewicz provided a copy of a Dec. 6 letter from the ICHD that she said 鈥渄oes not include blood lead testing.鈥� In the letter, the health department says the district had 鈥渂een swift in implementing layered mitigation measures to ensure no further exposure to lead will occur. ICHD applauds OPS鈥檚 proactive efforts to engage families through open communication and fully supports the continuation of this transparent and open dialogue.鈥�

It then went on to list recommendations to 鈥渕aintain a safe and healthy environment for students and staff,鈥� that included continued water testing and flushing of the system, and only allowing students to drink from filtered bottle-filling stations. It also said that ICHD had 鈥渟hared information with OPS about its lead testing program and other ways to receive a lead test. We encourage those with concerns to contact their primary care provider to address any questions.鈥�

Beczkiewicz said when the district鈥檚 nurses called the families with students in the Paw Paw room, they shared resources and information about testing either through the Ingham County Health Department or their family physician, but left the decision to the families.

鈥淲e thank the Health Department for waiving the fee for our students above the age of 5. We defer to the experts at the Health Department for medical recommendations, which were to offer information and resources to the families,鈥� she said.

But parents said at the Dec. 11 meeting the lack of clear and consistent communication was what they were most disappointed about.

鈥淭he ball has been dropped and it is disappointing,鈥� McCarty told the board. 鈥淚 have a kid that is in kindergarten, so she will be at OPM for four or more years and has already been there for three years because of preschool. I am scared to think what is going to happen to her in that building with her health and safety. I鈥檓 scared for the teachers, the staff, the former students in that building and nobody has an answer except, 鈥楧on鈥檛 drink the water. We鈥檙e going to post some signs. We鈥檙e going to add some filters.鈥� That is a joke.鈥�

Parent Stephanie Winslow said the district鈥檚 response was slow to get started and remains lackluster, expressing frustration that testing didn鈥檛 occur until November, several months after problems were first noticed.

鈥淎t the beginning of the school year, concerns were raised about discolored water,鈥� she said. 鈥淢eanwhile, each morning I double and triple triple check backpacks to make sure that we have water bottles from home 鈥� extra ones on gym days, which are tomorrow. So I need to make sure that those are washed, ready to go, and cross my fingers that my 5-year-old can navigate the drinking fountains鈥� 鈥榥ot for drinking鈥� signs posted on problem fixtures and hope that he can reach the refillable stations and hopefully the green lights are on throughout the day. Today, I was informed by my third-grader that the light was red at his refilling water station. This is unacceptable. The administration needs to take action.鈥�

However, it appears that the administration only took action after a formal grievance was filed by the Okemos Education Association, the union which represents the district鈥檚 teachers. When asked about the grievance, Beczkiewicz confirmed its existence, but said it was 鈥渁bout water in some classrooms that was rust or brown colored,鈥� even though it listed many other issues of concern.

The grievance obtained by the Advance, which was verified by an official with the Michigan Education Association, states that 鈥渨ell documented鈥� issues had remained unaddressed since the start of the school year in August and had prompted a walk-through of the building on Sept. 21 which found the working conditions to be 鈥渁ppalling.鈥� It said that a summary of the unacceptable and unresolved issues was then given to Hood and other administrators the following day, but remained unresolved.

Among the concerns in the grievance were air and noise pollution being caused by ongoing construction, asking that it only be held on nights and weekends when children were not in the building. It also requested that rooms be cleaned daily of 鈥渁ny residual construction debris and dust,鈥� noting that requests to have areas cleaned were not being met. It further said carpets in 鈥渂oth [teachers] Mary Weir & Christine Batora鈥檚 rooms need to be replaced immediately due to mold,鈥� and that water testing 鈥渘eeds to occur wherever dishes are being washed and drinking fountains, particularly in the preschool rooms,鈥� with results shared with the staff.

The first water testing at OPM wasn鈥檛 conducted until Nov. 8, nearly a month later.

The grievance also noted that requests to the district鈥檚 work order system, known as FMX, were not being completed regularly.

鈥淎t times, requests are marked as completed when they have not, in fact, been completed,鈥� said the memo. 鈥淭his system needs to be addressed and a plan in place so that confidence can be restored. The students and staff of Okemos schools deserve a safe, secure, clean, and healthy building in which to teach and learn, and clearly this standard has not been met at Okemos Public Montessori.鈥�

The person responsible for running the FMX system is the district鈥檚 operations manager, which up until Dec. 1 was Mark Fargo. However, he has since left the district, which is now advertising for his replacement. When asked if there was a correlation between Fargo鈥檚 departure and the issues coming to light at OPM, Beczkiewicz would only say she 鈥渃annot comment further on personnel issues.鈥�

Meanwhile, the cause of the contamination remains undetermined.

The district has indicated it was likely connected to construction work that took place in the building, which resulted in lead solder that was used to join the copper pipes to be released into the water supply. ICHD Director of Environmental Health Rod McNeill told the Advance that while that is the most likely scenario, it will take time and patience to fully answer that question.

鈥淲e don鈥檛 know for sure what the source is at this time, and quite frankly, we may never know for sure what the source was, but it takes a long time to rebuild that scale on piping,鈥� he said, referring to the phosphate coating on the inside of a pipe that help prevent lead from older solder being leached into the water itself.

鈥淎nd the only way to do that is to have water moving through the system, thus our recommendations to have them flush all the faucets for 10 minutes every day that they鈥檙e there in the morning, when they first get there. That鈥檚 to keep that phosphate chemical continually being refreshed in that distribution system, and in those faucets and supply lines throughout that building. And over time, that will replace that scale and thus protect the water from the piping and the fixtures and such. But that could take weeks, months. It鈥檚 not a quick chemical process. It takes a while.鈥�

Being the oldest building in the district, OPM is likely to have more of the outdated piping and fixtures that contain lead. That was precisely why former OPM Principal Sue Hollman told the board she was angered that the approved by voters in 2022 didn鈥檛 contain any substantive upgrades for the building.

鈥淚 was the principal here at Okemos Montessori for 14 years, and I鈥檓 currently the chair of the Okemos Education Foundation,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o, as you can tell, I鈥檓 extremely invested in this community and school district. I came to you last year as you were finalizing the proposal for the bond, I was disappointed and angry. Central, the oldest building in the district, was not included in the proposal in any meaningful way. Apparently, the plan is that in eight to 10 years when we have the next bond, Central will be included in that. And I guess that was supposed to be a good thing and I鈥檓 supposed to be happy about that. I wasn鈥檛. I was angry then and I鈥檓 angrier now.鈥�

Hallman said while the Okemos district likes to tout the phrase 鈥�21st century learning and 21st century buildings,鈥� that falls short when it comes to the students and staff at Central.

鈥淭his part of the building you鈥檙e in is a hundred years old and the school is 80,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen I was principal, we all knew about the asbestos in the building, which prohibited many updates. The poor air quality, the leaky roof, it seemed we always had a bucket somewhere collecting raindrops. You鈥檇 think these concerns alone would鈥檝e qualified us under one of the bond bullet points, which is listed on the website. And I quote, 鈥楻eplacing and expanding aging facilities while addressing critical needs.鈥� Apparently, that鈥檚 for all schools except for Central, the oldest building in the district.鈥�

Hallman also didn鈥檛 accept that the lead contamination was necessarily due to something recent.

鈥淭he community has been told it鈥檚 due to the construction in the vestibule office area,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 a nice clean explanation that may sound good to the general public, but the truth is it鈥檚 an old building. And it appears with no meaningful long-term plan for Central, things like this are going to continue to happen.鈥�

Hallman compared the current bond plan for Central to painting over a 15-year-old car to avoid fixing the problems.

鈥淪o, I鈥檓 here tonight to let you know that I鈥檓 going to continue to be here until a meaningful plan to keep our kids and staff safe is put in place, as well as a plan to create an equitable facility and learning environment for students and staff. That means in [the] short-term, putting filters in every faucet in this building. There needs to be a filter for our kids. And we need a plan, a real plan, on what to do for an 80-year-old building that needs to be developed now, not 10 years from now.鈥�

Hallman, speaking to the Advance this month, said she understands that the school board and administration aren鈥檛 to blame for the state of the building, but they do have control of what happens from this point moving forward.

鈥淚f they come up with a plan now, and it takes eight years to fulfill the plan because of whatever, OK, fine. I鈥檓 not gonna argue with that,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know the ins and outs of the building and engineering and financing. But to wait eight or 10 years and then start to make a plan, which then will take a few more years to put into place, is not in my opinion okay. I just think it鈥檚 a shame that the whole 鈥�21st Century learning in 21st Century buildings鈥� just kind of irritated me, because we鈥檙e almost a 19th century building, quite honestly, at least the older part is pretty close to it.鈥�

After Hallman, came the youngest speaker of the evening: 9-year-old Aster Soria, an OPM student.

鈥淚鈥檓 here to talk about the lead in the water at my school,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel really scared because I drink the water and I might have gotten lead in my body. Lead is very harmful to my brain and the brains of my friends. I care a lot about my friends and the teachers at my school, I feel like this situation shouldn鈥檛 have happened and it gets everybody very worried about if they have lead in their bodies. Also, I had to get a blood test, which hurt, and I have been very worried for a while because of what鈥檚 going on.鈥�

Soria, who could barely reach the microphone, said the contamination and the resulting actions have given her bad dreams.

鈥淜ids should feel safe at school and be OK with drinking water at school,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t makes me more worried about drinking water at school, so I don鈥檛 drink water at school anymore. I feel less safe at school and that I cannot trust a lot of things at school anymore.鈥�

As she sat down, the audience gave her a round of applause.

However, county health officials downplay concerns over contamination continuing at OPM.

鈥淭he exposure pathway to kids being exposed to lead has been stopped,鈥� said Shoyinka. 鈥淲e鈥檙e very confident聽 of that. Now, the source of the lead and getting that straightened out, that鈥檚 going to take time because that鈥檚 a complicated thing. And you try a solution and you give it some time, see if that works. If that doesn鈥檛 work, then we start exploring other [options]. You鈥檙e ruling things out. It鈥檚 a process of elimination and it takes weeks, months to do that.鈥�

Shoyinka also notes that rules surrounding lead content and exposure have been changing, meaning issues like those in Okemos, one of the more affluent districts in the state, are likely to start showing up elsewhere.

鈥淭he rules for schools [are] also changing in the sense that every school is now mandated to have filters at every faucet,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd that goes into place in April, I believe.鈥�

Michigan鈥檚 Clean Water Drinking Act, known as the Filter First Legislation, is a bipartisan package of bills requiring Michigan schools and childcare centers to install filtered-faucets, develop a drinking water management plan and conduct routine sampling and testing to ensure children have access to safe drinking water.

Concerns about lead in drinking water have taken on greater scrutiny in the aftermath of the , which began in 2014 when state-appointed emergency managers tried to save money by switching the city鈥檚 water supply to the Flint River without implementing anti-corrosion treatments. The old pipes then leached lead into the city鈥檚 drinking water, with some homes eventually testing at , causing widespread health issues, including elevated lead levels in the blood of children.

While the situation in Okemos isn鈥檛 at all at that level of seriousness, because children are involved, the concern is much more amplified, most especially because the source of the contamination has yet to be identified.

The may have lower IQ scores, decreased academic achievement, increased problems with behavior and attention related disorders as well as decreases in hearing and kidney function. Those potential problems become more likely with increased exposure, with a blood test seen as the most reliable method to determine the extent of that exposure.

That was one of the motivations behind also signed in October by Whitmer that guaranteed the screening of minors for lead poisoning in Michigan. The legislation requires all children be tested for lead poisoning between 12 and 24 months of age, while also allowing for parents to opt out if they choose to do so.

In addition to Flint, also suffered from extensive lead poisoning, while other Michigan communities have faced high rates as well, including and . In 2021, a published in JAMA Pediatrics found that Michigan ranked the third highest in the nation for children with elevated levels of lead in their blood.

to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), lead exposure is especially dangerous for children under age 6 because their bodies are rapidly developing.

Back in Okemos, the administration had scheduled a Zoom meeting for Dec. 14, with the plan of being joined by Phillip Peterson from the district鈥檚 water testing company Environmental Resource Group. The district also is coordinating with the Ingham County Health Department to have a representative there.

鈥淲e realize that our community has questions and concerns, and we want to offer a forum to address those,鈥� stated the district in an email. 鈥淭he focus of this meeting is to discuss the water at OPM, but we understand that other families may also have questions.鈥�

Following the frustration and anger expressed at the Dec. 11 meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Stacy Bailey, who was running the meeting in the absence of Superintendent John Hood, felt that something needed to be said that night. While the school board format does not allow for members to directly respond to comments made during the meeting鈥檚 public comment, Bailey did speak to the concerns toward the end of the evening, saying the district鈥檚 commitment was to come together and find solutions.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 our goal, to connect with those that are impacted, to make sure that everyone comes together at the table and to make sure that it鈥檚 a transparent and open process,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 what I wanted to share with all of you. I don鈥檛 have the answers, but I know that with everyone in this room, and in this space, and in this community, we will find a solution so that our community members, our students, and our families feel safe and healthy coming to school.鈥�

is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Michigan Advance maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Susan Demas for questions: [email protected]. Follow Michigan Advance on and .

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