Emails show Richmond paused scheduled air filter changes before mold closed 2 schools

RICHMOND, Va. — Months before mold problems forced two Richmond elementary schools to close for more than a week, Richmond Public Schools paused scheduled air filter changes performed by an outside contractor while the division was working through budget issues, according to emails exclusively obtained by CBS 6.

The records provide new insight into RPS maintenance practices at a time when the school division is facing questions about whether problems inside its aging buildings could have been prevented.

Those questions intensified at the start of this school year after an HVAC outage at Barack Obama Elementary School led to mold growth inside the building, delaying students' return to school by nine days.

Parents expressed frustration with the disruption.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Richmond has 'zero' preventative school maintenance, internal auditor says

“Their education does not deserve to be delayed because you didn’t take the school as priority,” one parent told CBS 6.

“I feel like, yes, a lot of these issues could have been avoided,” another parent told CBS 6.

Bellevue Elementary School also closed for more than a week because of mold.

The school division's own auditor subsequently raised concerns about RPS's approach to preventive maintenance, telling the Richmond School Board that the division had zero preventive maintenance mechanisms for its buildings.

“Everyone says, ‘I need more money,’ but actually, it’s an efficiency issue,” the auditor told the School Board. “This is my observation, competency issue.”

Email: ‘Press pause’ on scheduled filter changes

Regular air filter changes are part of routine HVAC maintenance. Dirty or clogged filters can put added stress on an HVAC system.

Records obtained by CBS 6 show RPS contracted with Temperature Control Mechanical Services, or TCMS, to change air filters twice a year.

But an email dated Feb. 10 shows an RPS fiscal associate telling TCMS the school division was “working through some budget issues.”

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According to the email, RPS's Chief Operating Officer had instructed her to “press pause on any scheduled spring/summer air filter changing.”

RPS told CBS 6 that rather than continuing to have TCMS perform the work, the division switched to having its own maintenance team handle air filter changes.

CBS 6 asked RPS whether the filters were changed in 2026.

A spokesperson pointed to filter changes at Obama and Bellevue elementary schools. However, the spokesperson said those filters were changed in August as part of the mold remediation process.

CBS 6 also asked RPS whether its maintenance staff changed air filters across the division during the spring and summer of 2026 after the contractor’s work was paused. RPS has not responded to that question.

RPS said it does not believe the decision to pause TCMS's role in changing filters contributed to the mold problems at the schools.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Richmond schools tackle mold with new prevention plan

Auditor: Preventive maintenance could prevent surprises

The school division's auditor has argued that a stronger preventive maintenance program could help RPS identify problems before they become emergencies.

“If we have preventative maintenance, we would have known the situation at the school,” the auditor said. “We can actually prepare ourselves how to handle it. It wouldn't be a surprise.”

CBS 6 requested an interview with RPS's COO, but he declined.

Superintendent Jason Kamras previously acknowledged the division needs to improve its preventive maintenance while also pointing to the financial realities of maintaining Richmond's school buildings.

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“Two things are true. One, we can do a better job. Absolutely, I've said that, and I own that,” Kamras said. “And two, it is hard to do all the preventive maintenance that we would like to do. There simply aren't enough dollars to go around to do all those things.”

Kamras said the division needs greater investment to bring its buildings to the standard it wants for students and teachers.

The cost of changing filters

The records obtained by CBS 6 also provide context for the financial challenge.

According to the documents, TCMS changing the air filters one time at every Richmond school cost more than $464,000.

That price underscores the tension now facing the school system: the division's auditor has called for stronger preventive maintenance, while its Superintendent says there is not enough money to perform all of the maintenance RPS would like to do.

At the same time, the February email shows the budget concerns had real consequences for at least one piece of the division's maintenance plan: its contracted spring and summer air filter changes were put on pause.

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