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#WellnessFriendlySchools
We Need Earth-Friendly, Wellness-Friendly Schools

Good Indoor Air Quality is an important component of a healthy indoor environment, and can help schools reach their primary goal of educating children.

Good Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) contributes to a favorable learning environment for students, better performance of teachers and staff, and an overall sense of comfort, health, and well-being. These elements combine to assist a school in its core mission: educating children. 

MERV-13 filters in window air conditioners promote good IAQ and reduce students’ risk of viral transmission — MERV-13 filtration even protects students from contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus. High efficiency MERV-13 air filters are a proven and safe method for removing pathogens and other contaminants with the HVAC system.

Optimizing daylight as a light source in schools improves students’ academic performance.

Young people spend the majority of their time in various educational environments, and these spaces are crucial to their psychological, physical and social development. School planners have an opportunity to design a school environment that supports cognitive functions and overall health, and that, consequently, improves student performance. Healthy students are better learners.

Schools play an important role in promoting the health and safety of students. When policies and practices are put in place to support healthy school environments, healthy students can grow to be healthy and successful adults.

1260Hours

Student Hours Indoors

Student Hours in Classroom

Students spend 1260 hours inside a school building, representing 14% of their day.

Quality Indoor Environment Improves Learning

On March 3rd, 2019, Eneref Institute wrote a letter to school executives across the country imploring that natural interior daylight be used for classroom lighting.

“The right daylight design in classrooms can improve student test scores.”

Read full text of press release.
#WellnessFriendlySchools

We Can All Take Actions

What to Do

The first step to effect change is to conduct a thorough search about how to communicate with your state’s School Board of Education and School Facilities Board to demand the adoption of policies that guard students’ wellness. Discover your state Boards’ optimal timetables to receive public comments, written or oral, prior to meetings in which the implementation of new regulations will be considered. Furthermore, you can attend public meetings or feedback sessions conducted by the state Boards and register for a timeslot to speak directly to the executives. Finally, get involved in the schools’ family and community engagement programs. Make sure that your voice is heard and that your concerns are addressed so that younger generations have #WellnessFriendlySchools.

What to Know
  1. FILTRATION SYSTEMS IMPROVE INDOOR AIR QUALITY AT SCHOOLS

    Better filtration will not only prepare school districts for the next infectious disease but will create immediate IAQ benefits for over 50 million students. EPA’s Science Advisory Board consistently ranks indoor air pollution among the top five environmental risks to public health, as indoor contaminants can be as much as one hundred times higher than outdoor levels. Beyond increasing exposure to respiratory viruses, poor indoor air in schools has been shown to aggravate asthma, allergies, and other respiratory illnesses in students.

  2. MERV-13 FILTRATION PROTECTS STUDENTS HEALTH

    MERV-13 filtration in air conditioning systems reduce students’ risk of viral transmission and exposure to environmental health hazards. Many existing HVAC systems were designed using MERV-8 filters or less, yet MERV-13 filters are five times more effective at capturing respiratory droplets and reducing viral concentration. MERV-13 filtration can help protect students from contracting the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

  3. STUDENTS PERFORM BETTER UNDER NATURAL DAYLIGHT

    There is plenty of evidence that daylighting improves occupant productivity in both schools and offices. Especially in learning environments, skylit classrooms provide a natural and stimulating space for teacher and student. While studies show that poor lighting adversely affects learning, daylighting has been proven to increase student performance in math and reading scores, as well as improving attendance.

  4. TEACHERS PERFORM BETTER UNDER NATURAL INTERIOR DAYLIGHT

    Studies show that teachers have fewer sick days. The human performance numbers in daylighting systems are important because the ROI for daylighting installations can sometimes be a difficult sell. In fact, the human performance gains can outweigh the energy savings, where human performance can be measured in financial terms.

  5. POLISHED CONCRETE SYSTEMS BRING A VARIETY OF BENEFITS TO SCHOOLS

    Sustainability, which is indispensable for students’ wellness, can be incorporated into schools with polished concrete floors. Polished concrete floors also enhance the aesthetic of the building while reducing maintenance costs. These systems’ durability is greatly appealing and they are a good fit for the high-traffic needs of a school.

  6. INCORPORATING HUMAN-FOCUSED DESIGN INTO BUILDINGS IMPROVES PRODUCTIVITY

    A healthy school environment boosts not only employee productivity but also student performance by optimizing comfort, morale and attitude. There is a direct relationship between academic achievement and health-related behaviors. What is more, a building’s increased health-oriented features reduce the risk of stress-related illnesses and heart disease.