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Grad sues Penn State over mold in dorm

Saturday, June 18, 2005


CARLISLE, Pa. (AP) -- A woman who graduated from the Dickinson School of Law last month is suing Penn State University, which owns the law school, saying mold in her dormitory made her sick.
Masayo Quick, of Colorado Springs, Colo., is seeking $25,000 in damages from Penn State, which denies that any mold ever existed in the dorm room.
During her first year at Dickinson, from August 2002 to May 2003, Quick lived in Levinson Curtilage residence hall. Her skin started getting irritated and eventually her hands got swollen and started bleeding, according to the lawsuit.
From December 2002 to January 2003, Quick lived at home in Colorado and "her skin returned to normal by the end of winter break," the lawsuit claims. When she moved back into the dorm, she said the skin problems flared up again and her skin began oozing yellow liquid.
Quick contends that medical treatment helped the problem but did not cure it. She said doctors advised her to check the dorm for signs of mold, and she said she found mold-covered areas in the living room.
In her lawsuit, Quick alleges she was diagnosed with dermatitis and her symptoms continued for some time after she moved out of the dorm.
Penn State officials deny that there was a mold problem in the dorm.
"At no time has toxic mold or any other type of contamination been discovered at Levinson Curtilage," the school said in a statement.
Alternative housing was found for Quick as soon as she reported the health problems, school officials said.
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