SUMMIT TWP — Though classes resumed Thursday, the work to determine how to make the drinking water at Summit Township Elementary School safe and investigate why there was a delayed response by district officials is in its early stages.

Butler County District Attorney Rich Goldinger said Thursday that he received a letter from district solicitor Tom King asking for his office to determine if any criminal activity had occurred at the school or in the district.Goldinger said he referred the case to the state police barracks in Butler and that an investigator would be assigned to look into the matter.

The officer will eventually report any findings to Goldinger who will determine whether criminal charges should be filed, he said.

Following a lengthy executive session during Monday night’s school board meeting, the board voted in favor of having King report any findings that may involve criminal activity to the proper authorities.The board also hired attorney Michael Witherel to investigate the incident independent of law enforcement and make a report back to the board and King.

Though the investigations are just beginning, some people are calling for school Superintendent Dale Lumley to be held accountable.

An online petition calling for Lumley to immediately resign his position has garnered several hundred signatures.

The petition, which is written as an open letter to Lumley, was posted by Summit Township resident Missie Carbin Wednesday night and had more than 400 signatures, after 24 hours.

The letter alleges that Lumley knew about the high lead levels in August and did nothing.

“Our trust in you to protect our children has been irreparably and irretrievably broken,” it says.

Lumley did not return calls for comment about the petition.

Meanwhile at the school, engineers and district officials are conducting multiple tests to establish a new baseline of data and try and identify the source of any contamination.

“We’re testing almost anything and everything you can test for, we’re not just following the DEP guidelines, ” said William Pettigrew, chairman of the Summit water project team.

Pettigrew, a retired school superintendent who formerly was head of the Mars School District, said that he met with DEP officials for four hours Wednesday and his job will be to coordinate the district’s efforts to make sure the situation is being addressed appropriately.

To ensure the health and safety of students and faculty, the district is in no hurry to turn the water back on, Pettigrew said.

“We’re not really looking for a quick fix, I think we need to address the situation and really get into ‘what is the problem that is causing the readings?’” he said.

Though the district does not have any reporting requirements to the state Department of Health, the department will be providing a school health consultant to assist officials, parents, students and staff, according to an update posted Thursday to the district’s website.

Also on Thursday, the district announced that it has entered into a contract with Butler Health System for blood testing.

Students can be tested between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday next week at the elementary school. Students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and must fill out a consent form.

Testing will also be available at any Butler Health System facility and parents can get reimbursed by the district.