Paolo Gurany ’29 and his roommate returned from winter break to find mold crawling up the walls from the corners of their third-floor dorm room in Spradley-Young.
“It was honestly just so apparent. I’m honestly shocked that no one caught it beforehand,” said Gurany. “The smell hits you, the humidity hits you, and every corner you look there’s mold growing.”
Evidence of mold existed in his dorm room last semester, according to Gurany. Gurany noticed what he believed to be small specks of mold on the walls of his room. Gurany notified his Resident Advisor (RA), who submitted a work order.
“We had no complaints/work orders regarding any environmental issues in Spradley-Young residence rooms last semester,” said Jon Brighton, managing director of campus operations.
After discovering the mold had spread after break, Gurany talked to his RA again, who contacted ResLife. Gurany claimed ResLife was initially dismissive, and that it was only after his parents got involved, emailing ResLife with photos of the mold, that Gurany and his roommate were relocated to other rooms in late January.
According to Jaylen Aubry ’27, an RA for Spradley Young, many residents felt uncomfortable after the incident.
“The residents of Spradley asked me if their room was safe living there, and I didn’t feel like I had a clear answer,” said Aubry.
Mold has been a pervasive issue on campus, with reports of mold in academic and residential buildings going back to at least 2015. Residents of Spradley-Young have complained about mold problems before. The Square featured a satirical poem about mold in Spradley-Young in its first issue of last semester.
Three years ago, the roof of Spradley-Young was damaged in a storm. At the time residents of the third floor were told to protect their valuables because of potential water leakage, but this was not identified as the current source of the mold.
“During inspection and mitigation no source of excess moisture was identified,” said Brighton. The room and the mold were “tested and mitigated by a specialty vendor and no subsequent moisture related issues have been found or reported in other spaces during our inspections.”
Both Gurany and his roommate have been permanently relocated. It is unclear whether or not the room is currently available for residents. 
