Jeff Strang of the Multnomah County Health Department draws blood from ACCESS Academy 8th grader Maura Kelley to test for lead.
Jonathan House
Two Portland teachers have had lead show up in their blood, according to test results they’ve shared with their union. And both teachers have ties to a school in North Portland.
Portland Association of Teachers president Gwen Sullivan said one of the two teachers recently left for another school.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identify 5 micrograms per deciliter as the “action” level for children and 10 micrograms for adults. Sullivan said one of the teachers was above those levels.
“We just found out on Friday that one of our teachers did test three times over the safe limit and does need medical attention to get the lead out of her body,” Sullivan said.
OPB is not releasing the names of the teachers because they didn’t give permission. Sullivan had few details on that teacher’s home and whether that might be a source of the lead poisoning.
Related: Lead In The Water
The teacher who changed schools has asked if her medical bills might be covered by Portland Public Schools. Both union and district officials suggest a step like that would likely require a thorough investigation to determine that the school — and not the teacher’s home or other source — was the cause of the lead poisoning.
Meanwhile, the other teacher told colleagues that lead has shown up in her blood but not enough to require treatment. That teacher said her own children — who attend the same North Portland school — haven’t tested high. But the teacher said her kids bring water from home to drink at school, while she drinks from water fountains and coffee brewed with school water.
The teacher wrote to her fellow staff members to prompt them to get tested, too.
A 261-page summary of Portland Public Schools’ water fixture tests shows the North Portland school had a recent elevated level: a food prep sink in the kitchen, tested in 2011. It’s one of a handful of fixtures that PPS officials acknowledge wasn’t immediately remedied.
In general, health officials say people are most often affected by lead in the home, rather than from institutions like schools. The teacher said she is getting her home tested for lead as well.
Related: Who Shows Up, And Who Doesn't, In Mountain Of PPS Lead-Related Emails
Portland Public Schools is testing for lead in school drinking water districtwide and planning to publish results as they come in. The district is looking into sending teachers kits to test their own blood. It also may offer blood tests at a school.
Portland Public Schools brought in Multnomah County health staff earlier this month to test students and pregnant staff members at Creston and Rose City Park schools — two schools discovered this spring to have elevated lead levels in drinking water. PPS has since released documents showing dozens of other schools tested high for lead in recent years, and it’s not clear what steps were taken to mitigate those sources. The district turned off all drinking water at the end of May and supplied bottled water to all schools through the end of the school year.
A PPS spokesperson said if the district offers more lead screening, it will likely focus on testing pregnant staff and long-time district employees, two groups most at risk for adverse effects. Union officials want exposed school staff tested as soon as possible for the most accurate readings. A district spokesperson says school staff can expect to hear more in early July.
Editor’s note: This story has been changed to remove the name of a person and the name of a school. The changes were made at that person’s request, on advice from the police, to protect their family.
