There are already about 1560 students at a crowded Dominion High School and now Dominion is even more packed with the appearance of cockroaches in the science classrooms. The cockroaches were first spotted in the spring of last year and are still roaming around the science classrooms. They are in all the cabinets in all the upstairs science classrooms except for the two science chemistry classrooms, rooms 602 and 600. Cockroaches also might be in the downstairs classroom but none have been seen.

The problem seemed to be resolved at the end of last year. But Science Chair, Mr. George said, “The issue really became a problem when we [the teachers] came back from summer.”

It is not known why the cockroaches are in the classrooms. Summer school did use those classrooms over the summer, but it is unlikely that they did anything to trigger the return of the cockroaches. It is most likely that the cockroaches never fully went away and they reproduced a lot over the summer, which caused an even bigger increase of cockroaches in those classrooms.

To get rid of the cockroaches, the science department and the teachers have put in requests in the main office where there is a binder to notify the pest management company. The pest management company have come in a couple of times to treat it but whatever has been done hasn’t improved or changed the problem. Treatment will continue if the teachers keep informing the main office and pest management about the problem.

The cockroaches have had little effect on the students and the learning taking place in those classrooms. The cockroaches mainly stay in the cabinets and don’t come out when the lights are on. Labs have not been done in that area of those classrooms yet.

Biology teacher, Mr. Demott said, “The cockroaches are not out in the open, so it doesn’t really effect anything that is going on back there or the equipment. It’s just when you have to go in drawers when it’s a problem, but it doesn’t really affect the learning.”

While student’s education in those classrooms might not be affected, their health might. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, dropping or body parts of cockroaches have been known to cause asthma attacks. Students with allergies will also be affected. Mr. George said, “Hopefully it gets taken care of soon because I don’t think there are any students, teachers, or parents who would want their students learning in a classroom with cockroaches.”