The Golden Eagle Ballroom was packed with many disgruntled students, faculty and staff on March 20, as they shared their issues with the university about the King Hall building at a town hall discussion.
“We have cockroaches and rats that run around in this building,” claimed Students Against Tuition Hikes (SATH) member Noah Galbraith. There’s allegedly “mold that we can see growing in the ceiling.”
Walkouts and teach-ins were recently held to protest the news about potential asbestos, lead and mold exposure in the building. These efforts were hosted by multiple organizations on campus including SATH, Students for Quality Education, and the L.A. chapter of the California Faculty Association.
While there was asbestos present in the building, testing showed that there was no risk of exposure. However, a common mold was found in a sample on the third floor of King Hall in the C Wing after the university tested the building.
Though the risks were said to be minimal in emails from the university, many students and faculty have continued to express their concerns about the safety of the building.
Some attendees held signs that said, “No more mitigation. We need permanent evacuation.”
“Staff and faculty should be relocated immediately to other spaces on campus or should be allowed to work remotely,” said CFA-LA President Anthony Ratcliff.
Many professors have requested to be relocated, but not everyone has been able to do so.
“Some people got classrooms, and some people did not,” said Professor Olga Garcia. “Those of us who did not get classrooms are basically displaced and forced to go online.”
She called for the university to take further action to address campus concerns.
“The priority needs to be the students, the faculty and the staff because we are the heart of this university,” Garcia said. “We are yelling. We are screaming. We are interrupting to let the new president know we need help and we need a different type of help than what we’ve been given before.”
When previously requested for a statement about the complaints and concerns about the safety of the King Hall, the university gave the following statement: “The new president and administration are focused on addressing facilities needs in King Hall as well as across the campus. We will build on input provided by the University community and continue to collaborate with the University community to determine the future of King Hall.”
