Lead Forum TONIGHT 5/25 at Miner, 6 pm

In order to address parents’ ongoing concerns, there will be a Lead Forum TONIGHT at Miner Elementary School, 601 15th Street NE, starting at 6 pm in the school cafeteria.

You may have recently heard about the lead-related woes at several Capitol Hill schools. If you haven’t, you can click on this link to a recent Washington Post story about the elevated lead levels at three Capitol Hill schools– Capitol Hill Montessori at Logan (which also affected School Within School when the facilities were located at the annex), Payne Elementary and Miner Elementary. Although DCPS and DGS  have worked hard to renovate many of the elementary schools’ external appearance, the puzzling truth is that the infrastructure was not addressed as thoroughly: this includes aging pipes that may contain lead, and which still may carry water to the schools. This is an ongoing challenge all over the city; however, the lack of answers and timely information have left us all hurt and frustrated. The worst part of this situation is the fact that lead poisoning affects children under the age of six most profoundly, so this oversight feels like a betrayal to parents who have fought hard to help turn schools around and entrusted their children to DCPS.

DCPS’s chancellor, Kaya Henderson, recently sent a letter to parents, addressing concerns related to the elevated lead levels. You can read that letter by clicking this link: 2016_05_182_Citywide_Lead_Screenings. In the letter, Henderson points out that, “The risk of a child getting lead in their blood from water is low. However, if you are concerned about your child’s health, your best resource is your child’s pediatrician.” There will be lead screenings carried out at the schools through June 16, 2016, as well as blood lead screenings for children. The upcoming screenings will happen here: