Coachella Valley Mother Alleges School Failed to Act After Mold Found in Autistic Son’s Classroom

Updated 5:45PM 12/17/2025 : Perez reached out tonight with an update to NBC Palm Springs, saying the principal at John Kelly has informed her that her son’s class will now relocate to a different room, away from the mold and air contamination. However, she adds that part of John Kelly West is still dealing with contamination and is relying on its own filtration system.

A Coachella Valley mother is demanding answers after she says her five-year-old autistic son was left in a classroom with mold for days, even after school officials were made aware of the problem. Loretta Perez says what began as a foul smell inside her son’s classroom at John Kelly Elementary quickly turned into a serious health concern.

Perez recalls immediately noticing a strong, musty odor and signs of flooding, with dirt covering the classroom floor. She says she initially trusted school administrators to address the issue after seeing the principal enter the classroom. However, she later learned that the only action taken at the time was placing a fan in the room.

Concerned parents, including Perez, contacted OSHA that same morning. Her son, Fernando, who is autistic, continued attending class in the same room as visible mold spread across walls, floors, furniture, rugs, and materials. Perez says days turned into weeks before meaningful action was taken.

Eventually, the district hired ServPro to inspect two classrooms, but parents say they were not informed of the findings until December 2. Perez adds that some parents never received the notification at all. Her frustration grew after reviewing remediation reports, which she says contained timelines that did not align with what parents and staff witnessed.

According to Perez, a district email claimed students were immediately removed from the classroom on November 18 and that inspection crews were on site the following day. She disputes those claims, saying children remained in the classroom during that time. Additional discrepancies appeared in documents provided by the Coachella Valley Unified School District, which she says list conflicting dates for data collection, receipt, and analysis.

Perez also says her attempt to meet with district officials to discuss next steps and concerns about contaminated furniture was abruptly shut down, with the meeting canceled and redirected to legal counsel.

Now, she is turning to social media to raise awareness, saying she believes the lack of urgency may be tied to the fact that many affected students are on the autism spectrum. Perez emphasizes that children with special needs often rely on adults to speak up on their behalf and says parents are no longer willing to tolerate what they see as neglect.

Perez is calling for immediate action, accountability, and assurances that student health and safety will be prioritized moving forward.