Kennedy High in Richmond Reopens as PCE Source Remains Unknown

Key Takeaways

• Kennedy High School in Richmond, California, will reopen Tuesday, Aug. 18, after air testing found no unsafe levels of PCE in the main buildings.
• The underground PCE contamination plume remains, and the source is still unidentified, according to state officials.
• The culinary kitchen and welding or metal shop will stay closed for extra sampling; some sources refer to the second room as a metal shop.
• The district has spent about $100,000 on testing so far, and contingency plans could have cost at least $200,000.
• Nearby homes have not shown elevated PCE levels, and the Richmond Swim Center, which the city shut down, is expected to reopen on Aug. 24.

Welcome Back, Kennedy Eagles

Students at Kennedy High School in Richmond will return to campus Tuesday after environmental testing confirmed there is no evidence of harmful vapor intrusion from PCE. The school closed in early August after underground contamination was found during a renovation project.

Superintendent Cheryl Cotton made the announcement Thursday night at a community meeting. "I need great news energy in this room, I got great news! There is no evidence of vapor intrusion at Kennedy High School and there is no evidence of immediate or long-term health concerns from PCE in our soil gas, that is exciting news!"

Liz Sanders, assistant superintendent of communications for the school district, expressed relief. "Knowing that there is no evidence of vapor intrusion at all, we are really relieved to know that we can welcome our Kennedy Eagles back to campus." She added, "This is not the end of our partnership. They are committed to meet with us and we are committed to continuing to work with them so that we monitor this issue."

In a separate statement, Sanders said, "We are really grateful to hear that they had no concerns that there would be any immediate or long term health risks for our students or staff so we are able to safely, in good confidence, bring our student back to Kennedy High building."

Despite the all-clear for classrooms, the investigation is not over. The source of the chemical remains unknown, and the contamination plume is still underground.

What the Tests Found

The West Contra Costa Unified School District received test results on July 31 showing PCE, or perchloroethylene, beneath the Kennedy campus. The district closed the school on Aug. 3. After testing indoor and outdoor air, soil and concrete slabs, officials said they found no levels of PCE that pose an immediate or long-term health concern.

The air test results, released by WCCUSD on Thursday, found no traces of PCE in any classroom or administration building.

The indoor and outdoor air samples taken last week show that PCE is not in the air in most campus locations.

PCE, also called tetrachloroethylene, is a colorless, nonflammable chemical once widely used as a dry cleaning solvent. California began phasing out PCE in 2007 and the Air Resources Board banned its use in dry cleaning in 2023.

To ensure impartiality and transparency, an independent third party was selected to perform the environmental testing.

Officials from the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) said the testing results "represent the best possible scenario," according to Superintendent Cheryl Cotton.

In a Parent Square post, Cotton wrote, "There is no evidence of vapor intrusion at Kennedy High School, and there is no evidence of immediate or long-term health concerns from the PCE in soil gas."

Two Rooms Stay Closed

Not everything is back to normal. Low levels of PCE were detected in the culinary program's kitchen and in the welding or metal shop. Some news reports call the second room a metal shop, while others call it a welding shop or welding room.

District official Jeff Carter said the PCE in those rooms was likely linked to industrial or consumer products found there. Those products will be removed. Additional sampling will be done under normal conditions before the kitchen and welding room reopen. In the meantime, the district plans to use mobile kitchens and food trucks.

State scientist Marikka Hughes said, "We did find some PCE in some of the rooms specifically the welding shop and the kitchen." Hughes said the state scientists who did the testing believe the PCE in those rooms came from consumer products, not the soil below the school.

Sanders echoed that assessment, saying, "They believe it’s from consumer products that have occupational connections to those spaces."

According to Cotton, the detectable levels in those rooms fell above residential screening levels but well below the limits for commercial or occupational spaces, and far below CAL/OSHA standards. The district and DTSC plan to survey all chemicals in both rooms, remove consumer products that may be enhancing the PCE levels, and test again. If the levels drop, the rooms will reopen.

Swim Center Reopening Discrepancy

There are conflicting reports about the Richmond Swim Center, which is connected to Kennedy High. KTVU reported that the swim center would reopen Tuesday alongside the school. However, Richmond Deputy City Manager LaShonda White told The CC Pulse that the pool is expected to reopen the week of Aug. 24. Anyone planning to use the pool should check with the city for the latest schedule.

The city of Richmond shut down the community pool on campus. City officials now say the pool will reopen on Aug. 24.

Source Still Unknown

DTSC branch chief Marikka Hughes said construction at Kennedy did not release the underground plume. Instead, testing done by the city about a block north of the school prompted a closer look at the campus. Because construction was already underway, officials saw an opportunity to install vapor barriers as a precaution.

The PCE detected near 34th Street and Cutting Boulevard remains underground. Hughes said there is no structure at that site, so the risk of vapor intrusion is low. Residential testing around Kennedy did not find elevated PCE levels.

Marie Anyiam, who lives across the street from the school, voiced concerns about potential ground contamination spreading into the neighborhood. "For us community members who live in the surrounding area of the community, we want to make sure it's safe," she said. "I know it's not just a district problem." Mandi Bane of the Department of Toxic Substances Control responded, "There's no indication that there's been vapor intrusion into the homes. I understand the concern but we have no evidence of it but we are gonna do further work on it."

According to the district, the PCE was detected via small drilled testing holes, about 5 feet deep, in five of six locations tested in the northeast portion of the campus, including near Cutting Boulevard and 43rd Street to the east.

DTSC will work with the district and the city of Richmond to plan additional testing and monitor the contamination. But cleanup cannot begin until the source and extent of the contamination are better understood. "We hope to understand more in, unfortunately, the coming years because it does take some time to pull this all off," Hughes said.

The district said it will continue to monitor the issue and keep parents updated, but gave no specific future dates on additional tests.

Health Experts Weigh In

The district hosted several community meetings with scientists, doctors and other officials to keep the public informed during the closure.

Officials from the West Contra Costa Unified School District, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, and the city of Richmond held their second town hall meeting in two weeks on Thursday to present the findings to the community.

During a town hall hosted by the district, UCSF medical experts Dr. Peter Chin-Hong and Dr. Gina Solomon said the health effects of PCE depend on concentration and duration of exposure. Short-term exposure to high concentrations can cause dizziness. Long-term exposure has been linked to effects on the liver, kidneys and reproductive system, as well as bladder cancer.

According to the latest information, long-term exposure can also cause damage to the immune system and central nervous system, as well as memory loss, mood changes, and altered vision.

Detecting PCE does not mean someone has been exposed to a risky level. Chin-Hong praised the district for its precautionary approach. Solomon said she would feel comfortable sending a child to Kennedy High or working there herself.

Dr. Gina Solomon, chief of Occupational, Environmental and Climate Medicine at UCSF, said, "If I were a parent of a Kennedy High School teen, I would feel totally comfortable sending my child to that school and if I were a teacher or a staff member working in there, I would feel very comfortable going to work."

At the meeting, a community member voiced concern about the welding program, saying, "They always talk about that welding program and all the students love it, they spend a lot of time in there along with the teacher or teachers who are in there all day long so we need to make sure that person is not breathing in these chemicals!" Incoming ninth grader Mia Sedano was relieved by the news: "Hearing that we get to go back it's like good news for me. Now that all the testing has been done I feel more comfortable returning."

Local California Context

The closure disrupted back-to-school plans for about 1,200 students. Registration and orientation were moved to DeJean Middle School, and fall sports conditioning was suspended. The district prepared three contingency plans in case the campus could not reopen. Interim Associate Superintendent Jeff Carter said the district spent just over $100,000 on 26 air tests, not including about $20,000 for the original six soil tests in July.

The district also spent additional money on air purifiers as a precaution.

The contamination was discovered as part of a $280 million renovation of the nearly 60-year-old campus. The coincidence created extra urgency because construction crews were already on site.

Background

PCE was a common dry cleaning solvent from the 1940s through the 2000s. It can move through soil and groundwater and, under certain conditions, enter buildings through vapor intrusion. The chemical has been regulated more strictly over time. The current investigation began after city testing near the school detected the chemical and led to a broader look at the campus.

PCE is also used as a degreaser and is present in some household products. It is generally present in low levels in the air of urban areas such as Richmond.

Conclusion

Kennedy High School is safe to reopen, but the community should expect ongoing monitoring while DTSC works to identify the source of the PCE. Parents and residents can stay updated through the West Contra Costa Unified School District and the city of Richmond. The situation shows how quickly a hidden environmental issue can disrupt a school year and how important transparent testing is for public confidence.