Wootton High School Building Problems: Why the Rockville Campus Is Being Replaced, Not Closed

If you have searched “Why did Wootton High School close?” or heard that the aging Thomas S. Wootton High School building in Rockville is being shut down, there is an important distinction to make.

Wootton High School itself is not being closed. It is being relocated.

In March 2026, the Montgomery County Board of Education approved the relocation of Thomas S. Wootton High School to the new Crown Farm facility, with changes beginning in the 2027–2028 school year. Montgomery County Public Schools has been explicit that this is a move of the school — not the elimination of Wootton High School.

But the condition of Wootton’s existing building is a major part of the story.

An independent 2025 facility assessment commissioned by MCPS documented poor plumbing, poor HVAC equipment, aging mechanical components, corrosion, leaks and moisture-damaged ceiling tiles in the Rockville building. MCPS subsequently described the relocation as a way to address “safety and infrastructure concerns” while putting students into a modern facility.

Here is what the official records actually show about the old Wootton High School building — and what they do and do not establish about potential health concerns.

The short version, in one table

How old is the Wootton High School building?

Thomas S. Wootton High School’s existing campus at 2100 Wootton Parkway was originally constructed in 1970. A major addition was completed in 2001, but significant portions of the mechanical and plumbing infrastructure remained much older.

That matters because an aging building is not simply an aesthetic issue. Heating and cooling systems, pipes, ventilation equipment, electrical equipment and other components all have service lives. As they deteriorate, schools can face increasingly frequent maintenance needs, leaks, temperature-control problems and other building-performance issues.

MCPS contracted independent engineering firm Bureau Veritas to perform a comprehensive Facility Condition Assessment of Wootton in April 2025. The resulting report was issued in August 2025.

The findings provide the clearest authoritative picture of the building’s condition.

Wootton’s plumbing and HVAC were rated “Poor”

The Bureau Veritas assessment gave both the school’s plumbing system and HVAC system a condition rating of “Poor.”

The HVAC findings were particularly significant.

According to the engineering assessment, many heating and cooling components were original to the building, including boilers and several air handlers. Other components were also aging and showing signs of poor performance and substantial wear. Inspectors observed that the school’s main cooling tower was severely corroded and appeared to be leaking, and they recommended replacement of aging components in the short term.

The plumbing report identified similar age-related deterioration.

Some plumbing dated to the original 1970 construction. The assessment reported cracks and corrosion in original piping and documented several areas where moisture was visible on ceiling tiles underneath pipes. The engineers recommended replacing aging supply and sanitary lines.

Those findings are among the most important documented Wootton High School building problems because moisture control and ventilation are directly connected to indoor environmental quality.

What the assessment documented, system by system

Why moisture and HVAC problems can become health concerns

A deteriorated pipe or HVAC component does not automatically mean that students are being exposed to a hazardous substance. However, persistent moisture and inadequate building-system performance are legitimate indoor-air-quality concerns.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states that when excessive moisture accumulates in a building or on building materials, mold growth can occur, especially when the moisture problem remains undiscovered or unresolved. EPA guidance for schools emphasizes controlling moisture as the central strategy for controlling indoor mold growth.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention similarly reports that exposure to dampness and mold can be associated with respiratory problems. Depending on a person’s sensitivity, mold exposure may contribute to symptoms including coughing, wheezing, eye irritation, nasal symptoms and skin irritation, and it can produce more significant reactions in some people with asthma or mold allergies.

That makes Wootton’s documented combination of aging HVAC equipment, leaking mechanical equipment, deteriorated plumbing and moisture-damaged materials relevant from a health and indoor-air-quality standpoint.

It is important, however, not to turn that concern into a claim that official sources have not established.

Was there mold at Wootton High School?

Mold has been a community concern, but claims of widespread mold should be treated carefully.

The independent 2025 facility assessment documented moisture beneath aging plumbing and major HVAC deficiencies, conditions that can increase the risk of mold if moisture persists. But the summary assessment does not diagnose a building-wide mold infestation.

MCPS also created a School Building Impact Team focused on maintenance and operational challenges at Wootton. In an April 2026 update, MCPS reported that sections of lockers identified for examination had been removed and evaluated and that no mold was identified in those lockers. The same update documented dozens of completed work orders, cooling-tower repairs and a broken pipe discovered during system changeover.

So the most accurate description is this:

Wootton had officially documented moisture, plumbing and HVAC problems that can create conditions favorable to mold, while some reported areas investigated by MCPS were found not to contain mold.

That distinction matters. It allows legitimate building-health concerns to be discussed without presenting an unverified claim as fact.

Wootton’s facility condition score shows extensive aging

The independent assessment assigned Wootton High School a Facility Condition Index Depleted Value of 0.624582.

MCPS explains that its depleted-value FCI measures the remaining life and condition of major building assets and systems. Lower scores are better, while higher scores indicate more building-system deficiencies, reduced reliability and greater maintenance or replacement needs.

Wootton’s score therefore reflects significant accumulated infrastructure needs rather than a single isolated repair.

The report also identified aging electrical infrastructure. The school’s main switchboard and several panels and transformers dated to the original 1970 construction and were recommended for replacement in the short-to-near term.

Inspectors additionally found that several laboratory exhaust hoods carried “Maintenance Required” markings and were not recommended for use.

Taken together, the report depicts an aging facility with substantial mechanical, plumbing and infrastructure requirements.

What about lead in Wootton High School’s drinking water?

Lead is another issue that requires careful context.

MCPS’s 2024 Wootton High School drinking-water report recorded one initial outlet at or above Maryland’s 5-parts-per-billion school action level among 56 outlets sampled. Under MCPS procedures, an outlet exceeding that level is shut down and a remediation plan is developed.

Wootton also had elevated results in earlier rounds of testing. For example, a computer-lab faucet tested at 112 ppb in 2018 and was ultimately removed from service after post-remediation testing continued to exceed the applicable action level.

However, it would be misleading to describe lead as a currently unresolved school-wide drinking-water problem. MCPS’s current drinking-water results page lists Wootton’s latest 2024 results as 45 fixtures tested with zero elevated results.

The broader health concern around lead is well established. The CDC states that lead can be harmful even at low exposure levels and that no safe blood-lead level has been identified for young children.

For Wootton specifically, however, the responsible conclusion is that individual elevated outlets have been documented and addressed through MCPS’s testing and remediation program, rather than claiming that the school’s water system as a whole remained unsafe.

Why is Wootton High School moving to Crown Farm?

Building condition is important, but it is not the only reason Wootton is moving.

When MCPS recommended the relocation in February 2026, the school system said moving Wootton to the Crown Farm site would address immediate safety and infrastructure concerns while also accomplishing broader planning and financial objectives.

MCPS cited several goals: making better use of existing facility assets, completing infrastructure improvements more efficiently, responding to changing enrollment patterns and conserving limited capital funding.

The Montgomery County Board of Education formally approved the Wootton relocation on March 26, 2026. The new boundaries and associated changes are scheduled to begin in the fall of the 2027–2028 school year.

The Crown Farm facility is located in Gaithersburg and is under construction as the future Thomas S. Wootton High School.

Timeline of the Wootton relocation decision

So is the old Wootton High School building closing?

Not exactly.

MCPS has repeatedly said that Thomas S. Wootton High School is being relocated rather than closed.

The existing Wootton building is expected to remain in use by MCPS. The district plans to turn it into a holding school, which can temporarily house students from other schools while those campuses undergo major renovations, replacements or HVAC projects.

A June 2026 MCPS construction specification also confirms that the current Wootton building is expected to be fully occupied on a normal school schedule throughout the 2026–2027 school year.

In other words, headlines or online discussions saying “Wootton High School closed because of mold” oversimplify the situation considerably.

A more accurate description is:

Wootton High School is being moved out of an aging Rockville facility with significant documented plumbing, HVAC and infrastructure deficiencies. MCPS approved the relocation as part of a broader facilities, enrollment and capital-planning strategy.

Were building health concerns the reason Wootton closed?

They were part of the rationale for moving to a new facility, but they were not the sole reason — and the school was not simply ordered closed as an unsafe building.

MCPS explicitly referred to safety and infrastructure concerns when recommending the move. The independent facility assessment supports the infrastructure portion of that statement with documented poor HVAC and plumbing conditions, leaking and corroded equipment, moisture under plumbing, aging electrical infrastructure and equipment requiring replacement.

At the same time, MCPS’s official decision was connected to districtwide enrollment, capital spending and the opportunity to use the existing Wootton campus as a holding facility.

That distinction is essential for accurately understanding why Wootton High School is moving.

What parents can do about their own child’s symptoms

Building records describe a facility, not a diagnosis. If your child has been coughing, wheezing, or reporting nasal or eye irritation during the school day, the practical next step is a clinical one rather than an internet one.

• Track when symptoms happen — school days versus weekends, indoors versus outdoors, and which seasons.
• Bring that record to your child’s pediatrician in Montgomery County. Asthma and allergies are far more common explanations than a building exposure, and both are treatable.
• If symptoms are persistent, poorly controlled, or getting worse, ask about referral to a pulmonologist or an allergist for testing.
• For homes as well as schools, EPA’s core advice is the same: fix the moisture source, because mold control follows moisture control. Our guide on renovating a home with asthma covers what that looks like in practice.

The bottom line

The story of the old Wootton High School building is not simply that an old school developed one problem and was forced to close.

The official evidence shows something more substantial and more nuanced.

Wootton’s Rockville campus, originally built in 1970, accumulated significant infrastructure needs. Independent engineers rated its HVAC and plumbing systems poor, documented aging and corroded equipment, observed moisture beneath plumbing and recommended substantial replacements. The school’s overall facility-condition score also reflected significant depletion of major building systems.

Those conditions matter for comfort, reliability and indoor environmental quality. Federal health authorities also make clear that uncontrolled moisture and damp building conditions deserve attention because they can contribute to mold growth and respiratory problems.

But accuracy matters just as much.

Wootton High School has not been closed because authorities declared the building toxic. Instead, MCPS and the Board of Education decided to relocate Wootton to a new Crown Farm facility as part of a larger strategy addressing aging infrastructure, school capacity, capital costs and districtwide renovation needs.

For families searching for information about Wootton High School building issues, mold concerns, HVAC problems, the old Rockville campus or the 2027 Wootton relocation, that is the conclusion most strongly supported by the official record.