UPDATE: March 15, 3 p.m.
After being closed for a week for asbestos concerns, Simon Gratz High School Mastery Charter will be open to students on Thursday. The school’s auditorium will remain sealed off from students while School District of Philadelphia's inspections continue.
In a letter to parents, Mastery Charter CEO Scott Gordon said the school district, which owns the building, has created a "negative pressure" environment so that no air flows from the auditorium into the school. Gordon says no asbestos has been detected in air samples throughout the school.
Original story follows
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Simon Gratz High School Mastery Charter students will not return to school on Tuesday.
In a letter to families of the high school’s 800 students, CEO of Mastery Charter Schools Scott Gordon said the School District of Philadelphia, which owns the property, is still inspecting the building after an asbestos finding forced it to close.
The building has been closed to high schoolers since last week Wednesday, but students at the adjoining middle school returned to their regular classrooms on Monday after crews were able to take care of the minor damage and remove asbestos, according to Mastery Charter officials.
Gordon said if nothing major is found in the high school, a final report of the findings may come on Tuesday.
The auditorium, which still needs to be inspected, cannot be accessed by students and staff, Gordon said. Inspection and work done in the school's auditorium can be completed with students and staff back in the building, as it can be sealed off, officials say.
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As for Building 21 high school in West Oak Lane — the other school in Philadelphia that had to close for asbestos abatement in recent weeks — classes are still temporarily taking place at Strawberry Mansion High School. Attendance has been very low in the last week, with only a fraction of the 360 students going to school in person.
Many families have expressed their concerns to the district, school and teachers union. The commonwealth approved the move to virtual learning, but those plans still need to be ironed out.
The District says it will provide an update on Building 21 on Tuesday.
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