An unidentified odor at the Poplar Bluff Early Childhood Center will cause its first day of school to be postponed until Tuesday, Sept. 5, nearly a week past the original plan of Wednesday, Aug. 30.
Superintendent Scott Dill said he was made aware of the situation "over the weekend."
"Until I'm sure that it's safe, I'm not bringing kids in here," Dill said Monday while addressing the early childhood faculty and staff.
The smell is isolated to room 26 in C building, built in 2008, and is currently occupied by teacher Lori Bell. Dill said he, along with school maintenance crews, have capped lines, replaced vents, worked with the city to check sewer lines but have yet to determine what is causing the odor.
"We're bringing in environmental specialists and they're going to be testing the air. If they say we're good, then we're good. If they don't, then my alternate plan of moving classrooms will go into effect," Dill said.
Early childhood classes begin later than the rest of the district each year and though its mission and the work performed there is equally important to anything in the district, Dill said, it is "for all intents and purposes," a stand alone building.
"We discussed the fact that if a similar situation were to happen at one of our elementary schools, the solution would be much more problematic because of how interwoven the rest of the buildings are," he said. "We were able to take this opportunity to do the right thing and ensure we're putting the kids in a good situation without impacting the rest of the district."
The Poplar Bluff Early Childhood Center is located in the former Mark Twain School building at 1235 N. Main St.