Environmental Protection Agency (2012). (EPA 402-F-03-012)
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has developed this resource to help school districts and facility planners design the next generation of learning environments so that the school facility will help -- rather than hinder -- school in achieving their core mission of education children (1-pg resource).
Environmental Protection Agency (2010).
Substandard environmental conditions in schools, such as insufficient cleaning or inadequate ventilation, can cause serious health problems for children. Evidence continues to mount demonstrating that indoor air quality, or IAQ, directly impacts student academic performance and health.1,2 IAQ refers to those characteristics of the air in indoor environments that impact the occupants’ health, comfort and ability to perform. Taking steps to improve the IAQ of schools is critical to bettering student health and academic performance.
Environmental Law Institute (2009).
This report highlights the important role that can be played by state policy in ensuring that all schools address basic IAQ issues as part of their ongoing operations and maintenance activities. Numerous school districts around the country are already doing so, and some have pioneered new programs and approaches to addressing indoor environmental quality in their facilities. In many communities, school staff, employee unions and parents have advocated effectively for, and worked with school officials to establish, school IAQ programs. Yet carefully designed and implemented policies at the state level can provide flexibility while helping to ensure that minimum IAQ management practices will be implemented throughout a state.
United States Environmental Protection Agency. Office of Air and Radiation Indoor Invironments Division (2002). (EPA 402-K-02-005)
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed the Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools (IAQ TfS) Program to help schools prevent, identify, and resolve their IAQ problems. This publication describes the program and its advantages, explaining that through simple, low-cost measures, schools can: reduce IAQ-related health risks and triggers for asthma, identify sources of mold, improve comfort and performance levels, avoid costly repairs, avoid negative publicity and loss of parent and community trust, and avoid liability problems. The publication offers an overview of IAQ issues, offers examples of successful school efforts, and presents action items.
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