KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The University of Tennessee in Knoxville said it had to spend more than $9 million to fix mold issues discovered in the Fall 2018 semester at Laurel Hall.
The on-campus apartments, which held some 586 students at the time the mold was discovered, had to be closed for the remainder of the academic year last fall after elevated levels of mold were found in rooms and common areas.
UT said the $9 million was spent cleaning up the mold, relocating students to other apartments, and replacing infrastructure affected by mold.
Crews had to make changes to the HVAC system and windows, plus install new furniture and paint.
UT's executive director of housing Chandra Myrick said they're looking for help from students moving forward.
"We created a website this year that is off the housing website that will inform students and their families before they arrive what steps that they can take in terms of air quality and control, making sure that the things they can help with in terms of reducing moisture in their room," she said.
You can find a link to that website here.
UT said it also spent the summer making changes across campus to address mold and prevent more issues in the coming year.