New Kensington-Arnold superintendent says bed bugs 'not an issue' at Valley High School

Bed bugs are “not an issue” at Valley High School, New Kensington-Arnold Superintendent Chris Sefcheck said in a letter Thursday.

In the letter sent to district families, Sefcheck said parents have alerted the district that the high school has a problem with bed bugs.

In response, the district contracted with professional pest control services. Sefcheck said they visited the school three times over the past three weeks and again on Thursday.

“We are happy to report that Valley is not infested with any type of insect, including bed bugs,” Sefcheck wrote in the letter. “This does not mean that a bed bug may have been seen or captured on camera as the possibility of an individual bringing one to school in their clothing or backpack is the highest probability.”

Administrators and custodians have added more walk-throughs to ensure an “infestation-free learning environment,” the letter states.

“Although we appreciate the continued calls of concern and information, this situation is not an issue,” Sefcheck wrote.

The concern has not involved any of the district’s other schools, Sefcheck said.

“The administration has reacted appropriately to the concerns of the community and brought in the proper experts to assure our students are safe,” school board President Tim Beckes said.

In his letter, Sefcheck wrote that the professional service company the district works with, which is not named, has offered to help families that have an issue with bed bugs at home. Interested families are told to contact the district’s central office for a confidential conversation.

No financial terms of that help were discussed, Sefcheck said.

The district will continue to monitor the situation.

Sefcheck said social media, Facebook specifically, “is once again working against the work we do as educators.”

According to Sefcheck, a Facebook post had a fuzzy picture of a single bed bug in an undisclosed location. It was not possible to tell when the photo was taken.

“The hype on social media is doing nothing to help promote learning, and we ask you to consider reading each post with skepticism and doubt as we do not want students using an excuse like this to leave or not attend school,” Sefcheck wrote.