Riley Choi '28
Oct 10, 2025
Immediately before the start of the school year, mold (and a small mushroom!) was discovered in a dorm room in South Cottage, home to 36 boarders and nine day students. The building was constructed in the year 1836 and, along with North Cottage, is the oldest building on campus. This incident underscored both the challenges of maintaining Mercersburg Academy's historic campus buildings and the administration's commitment to addressing environmental issues.
For Allegra Garza '27, the school year began unexpectedly. Garza and her roommate arrived early to campus and noticed “an actual mushroom growing from one of the corners of the room” along with “black mold on the ceiling.”
“When I found out, I was disappointed because [the school] had three months to check that every room was intact,” Garza '27 said. “But the school quickly took it into its own hands and properly cared for it.”
Garza and her roommate were temporarily relocated to Fowle Hall while remediation took place. “Having to stay in another dorm was pretty tedious,” Garza explained. “I had to take trips from South to get all of my stuff back to Fowle, which was annoying. I also had to go over to South every Sunday for the dorm meetings. But in the grand scheme of things, everything seemed to work out.”
Other South Cottage residents shared similar reactions. Ellie Yang '27 said, “The building… [is] so old, but South's vintage aesthetic is also why I love it so much. The school was very swift to take action, organizing the sterilization and removal of the mushrooms in a considerate and fast manner.”
However, not all students viewed the situation positively. One student, who asked to have her name withheld, commented, “I feel like the school should have sorted this out during the summer, especially for returning students. Mold is a historic problem for this school, which means they should have been prepared. Were they too busy with the dining hall? You have people in protective gear and masks dealing with the mold, but what about us [students]?”
The Facilities Department, led by Director of Facilities Brad Otto, oversaw the remediation. “Our department has been responding to suspected mold-related incidents on a case-by-case basis,” Otto stated. “In all cases, we involve professionals to ensure that each situation is handled objectively and based on data.”
Otto confirmed that recent mold cases were caused by water intrusion. “It's an important issue that takes a focused, professional approach to ensure it's handled properly,” he said. “Oftentimes, remediation can be a lengthy process, which can be challenging for both our department and the affected occupants.”
Assistant Director of Facilities, Ben Martin, who joined Mercersburg Academy in 2022 and has had more than 10 years of experience in the commercial construction industry, explained further: “South Cottage has a 2 pipe system that uses chilled water from the central plant to run through a set of coils that air draws across to cool the air in the space. This is effective at dropping temperature but it can create challenges with reducing humidity. If it is very humid outside, the relative humidity levels in the building can rise. If windows or doors in the space are left open on a humid day it can exacerbate the situation.”
The school's commitment to rapid response was also evident in another case over the summer, when Christopher McSweeney, dorm dean of Fowle Hall, experienced mold in his faculty apartment caused by a leak while he was away.
“Within probably fifteen minutes, there were five people from facilities at my house,” McSweeney said. “We were on the phone with a mold remediation company immediately to get a professional assessment.”
McSweeney praised the administration's support, saying, “[Head of School] Mr. [Quentin] McDowell, [Associate Head] Mrs. [Jen] Craig, and everyone at that level were super supportive. They checked in every couple of days to make sure we were okay and had what we needed.”
Dorm dean of South Cottage and English department member Kacie England commented on the experience with appreciation: “Navigating this concern in our building has been a challenging hurdle to overcome early in our year, though I’m incredibly grateful for our Facilities team, who have been working diligently to identify and address all concerns. I have full trust in their thoroughness and dedication to making sure our building remains a safe and healthy place to live. And I’m so grateful for the patience and flexibility of our residents in South Cottage.”
While maintaining older structures like South Cottage continues to present challenges, both students and faculty have commended the school's transparency and efficiency in addressing environmental issues. As Otto put it, “It's about responding quickly, relying on science, and ensuring that the spaces our students and faculty live in are safe.”