FRISCO, Texas — Salma Ashaqali first started to notice something was wrong in early October when she picked up her son from middle school. What started as a complaint of a headache one day, turned into several consecutive days of complaints.
"He'd say, 'My head hurts a lot, my head is killing me,'" recalled Ashaqali.
Ashaqali made the connection that the roof work happening at his school, Staley Middle School in Frisco, led to him not feeling well.
Frisco ISD does confirm to WFAA that roofers had been working to repair the roof at Staley Middle School. In an email sent home to parents, the district said the "glue [roofers] used produced a strong odor."
Another parent told WFAA the odor originated in the gym in September and as the work progressed, the odor permeated through the main school in October.
"I was in there for maybe 10 minutes. It was horrible. I went into the library and I had to walk back out. Take paint and gasoline and combine them and make it ten-fold," said Ashaqali.
In an email sent home to parents, the district said four classrooms are relocated, the library is closed, a book fair has been moved, and a school event has been postponed.
“The district was notified of a smell resulting from the roof glue on Wednesday, October 18th, and the district had a restoration company on campus within hours. The district has halted roof work and will resume the update in the summer of 2024,” read a statement from Frisco ISD.
"Nothing has been provided to us that what they are inhaling is safe. So, how are we as parents supposed to know? That concerns me," said Ashaqali.
She has reached out to the district for an air quality test and a materials safety data sheet.
The district told WFAA that officials met with concerned parents. The district said no students have been hospitalized or have gone to the nurse for issues recently and that the affected library will soon open.
The district also said Staley Middle is soon due for a full renovation using 2018 bond funds.
Ashaqali said she's not alone but, for now, she is the only one willing to speak out for what she calls a need for a "safe and equitable" environment.
"Applaud me or condemn me. I am doing what I feel is necessary and right for my child and all those amazing teachers at Staley," she said.