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Facilities Staff
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Follow the links below to information prepared especially for you!
- School and District Officials
- Teachers and Students
- Facilities Staff
- Parents
- Health Care Professionals
- The Media
Envisioning Excellence: Lessons from Effective School Indoor Air Quality Programs. Read about this exciting tool.
What Should I Know about School IAQ?
Indoor air quality in schools is important, and regular facility maintenance and operations can do more to influence IAQ than any other school function. Healthy IAQ should be the goal of every school because good IAQ can promote student, teacher, and staff health, performance, and school attendance, while poor IAQ can lead to:
- Increased potential for short-term and long-term health problems, such as asthma (the number one cause of student absenteeism)
- Increased student, teacher, and staff absenteeism
- Reduced student, teacher, and staff productivity
- Accelerated deterioration and reduced efficiency of equipment and facilities
- Strained relationships among school administration, facility staff, teachers, and parents
- Potential liability problems
The IAQ TfS Program is a comprehensive resource to help schools understand IAQ issues, address IAQ problems, and improve school occupant health and performance. This program is designed to help facility staff incorporate simple IAQ management techniques into their everyday facility operations and maintenance procedures.
Did You Know?
The average public school is 42 years old, and school buildings begin rapid deterioration after 40 years if not properly maintained.
EPA understands the critical role that facility staff play in ensuring a healthy school environment and is committed to helping facility staff in their important and demanding jobs to operate and maintain healthy facilities where students, teachers, and staff can learn and thrive.
Is Poor IAQ a Big Problem in Schools?
Yes. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, over half of U.S. schools have problems linked to poor IAQ. With nearly 56 million people, or 20 percent of the U.S. population, spending their days inside elementary and secondary schools, IAQ problems in schools are a significant concern. In some school districts, IAQ problems have even led to emergency evacuations and the closure of school facilities. (Unfortunately, in far too many cases, because of past budget shortfalls, many of our schools are in poor condition, leading to a host of environmental problems that can have dramatic impacts on children, staff, learning, and the fiscal bottom line.)
- Poor IAQ can lead to serious health problems. IAQ-related health problems often result in school absences for teachers, students, and staff. To learn more about common symptoms associated with exposures to indoor air contaminants in schools, visit Common Symptoms.
- Asthma is one of the most serious IAQ-related health risks that schools face. An average of one in every 13 school-age children has asthma, and environmental asthma triggers frequently found in schools can cause or worsen asthma attacks. It is critical for schools to control environmental asthma triggers because asthma is the leading cause of school absenteeism due to chronic disease. Visit Managing Asthma in Schools to learn about simple steps schools can take to manage asthma triggers.
- Student performance suffers in schools with poor IAQ. Schools that do not maintain healthy IAQ may see performance drop because of increased absenteeism due to illness, inability to perform complex reasoning tasks, and a lack of concentration on school subjects. To learn more about the links between IAQ and student performance in schools, visit the Benefits of Good IAQ - Increased Student Performance.
What Kinds of IAQ Problems Do Schools Face?
Schools face a variety of potential IAQ problems and every school’s IAQ is different. Several factors work together to determine a school’s IAQ: site, climate, building structure, and mechanical systems, construction techniques, contaminant sources (indoor and outdoor), and building occupant behavior. Depending on the way these factors interact, schools may experience problems caused by:
- Biological contaminants (mold, dust mites, pet dander, pollen, etc.)
- Carbon dioxide (CO2)
- Carbon monoxide (CO)
- Dust
- Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) or Secondhand Smoke
- Lead (Pb)
- Nitrogen oxides (NO, NO2)
- Pesticides
- Radon (Rn)
- Other volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as formaldehyde, solvents, and cleaning agents
- HVAC System: the heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system is not able to control air pollutant levels and/or ensure thermal comfort
Visit Schools, IAQ, and Health to learn more.
At www.epa.gov/iaq, you will find guidance, tools, and resources to help facilities staff maintain and operate buildings that prevent a wide variety of indoor air problems.
How Can I Learn More about Environmental Health in Schools?
Visit EPA’s Healthy School Environments Website, www.epa.gov/schools, to find a wealth of information on environmental health risks in schools and no-cost tools, guidance, and support for maintaining healthy school environments. The Healthy School Environments Website covers indoor environmental issues and outdoor risks, water- and air-based risks, materials selection, chemical use and storage, and many other topic areas. On the Website, you will find information and no-cost resources and tools to help you manage lead in school drinking water, chemical exposures, diesel fumes from school buses, and much more.
Attention Facilities Managers: Coordinate an integrated school health program using EPA’s, one-of-a-kind school environmental health management software, the Healthy School Environments Assessment Tool (HealthySEAT). Improve student and staff health and performance, lower building maintenance costs, and prevent future problems with HealthySEAT.
How Can I Use the Healthy School Environments Assessment Tool (HealthySEAT)?
EPA developed HealthySEAT to help schools and school districts manage a full range of facility environmental health and safety concerns. HealthySEAT is unique database software designed to help schools evaluate and manage their school facilities for key environmental, safety, and health issues. HealthySEAT comes pre-loaded with checklists that address federal regulatory and voluntary programs for schools. The software can be customized by schools and districts to include state and local policies as well. EPA will provide the tool at no cost, and does not require schools to report their findings. Please visit www.epa.gov/schools and click on HealthySEAT to download the tool today.
What Can I Do to Maintain Good IAQ in My School Buildings?
What is the IAQ TfS Action Kit?
The Kit contains information on IAQ, typical pollutant sources, management techniques, and guidelines on how to educate and communicate with your school community about IAQ issues. Learn more about the Kit, download the contents, or order your copy at no cost by visiting IAQ TfS Action Kit or by calling IAQ INFO at 1-800-438-4318.
Maintaining good IAQ requires coordinated facility management to ensure routine inspection and maintenance policies. As school facility staff, you are in an ideal position to affect facilities’ IAQ because you know the building inside and out and, therefore, know where potential threats to IAQ may lurk. Facilities staff can do an enormous amount to ensure healthy IAQ, building occupant health, and school performance.
Use the IAQ TfS Action Kit! To learn specific steps you can take today to improve your school’s IAQ, download the IAQ TfS Action Kit. All of the steps you need to consider to set up a school IAQ management program are covered in the IAQ TfS Action Kit – a resource available to you at no cost. In the Action Kit, you will find detailed checklists designed for different members of the school community – teachers, school health professionals, kitchen staff, administrative office staff, custodial staff – that provide simple advice about common IAQ problems in schools and steps you can take to help maintain a healthy environment. Several of the following checklists will give you ideas of immediate actions you can take to improve school IAQ.
- The Ventilation Checklist – Use this checklist to conduct an inventory of your building’s air intakes and exhaust vents to ensure that pollutants are not coming into your building with fresh air and that exhaust fans are working to carry noxious fumes out of the building
- The Building Maintenance Checklist – Use this checklist to conduct an inventory of chemical use, storage, purchasing, labeling, and disposal to ensure that, in an IAQ crisis, you know every chemical on hand and that every container for a potentially harmful chemical is safely stored away from student
- The Waste Management Checklist – Use this checklist to determine if your facility’s art, science, and lab class chemical waste is stored separately from other waste and is kept in a well-ventilated room that exhausts air to the outside
- The Renovation and Repairs Checklist – Use this checklist to identify materials for use during renovations and repairs that will result in minimal off-gassing to ensure students, teachers, and staff stay healthy during the process
- The Walkthrough Checklist – Use this checklist to identify common trouble spots in and around school buildings where the sources of IAQ problems may hide, such as bird’s nests on the roof near the ventilation system intakes, or disconnected vent hoses on combustion appliances
Other checklists available in the IAQ TfS Action Kit include: Teacher's Classroom Checklist, Administrative Staff Checklist, Health Officer/School Nurse Checklist, Food Service Checklist, and the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Checklist.
Following the simple suggestions provided throughout the IAQ TfS Action Kit will help facility staff immediately identify potential improvements and understand how facility management processes influence IAQ. It will also help you to explain the critical importance of your work and the need to educate the whole school community about some simple facility management processes. By getting everyone in your school to understand that facility management processes can influence building occupant health, safety, and performance, you can build support for your efforts among school officials, teachers, and students.
The most effective school IAQ management teams almost always include a dedicated school facility staff person who is passionate about keeping school buildings and their occupants healthy.
Can I Get Help from Other Schools and Districts That Are Using the IAQ TfS Guidance?
Yes. According to the 2002 IAQ Management Practices in Schools Survey, 22 percent (or about 26,000) of the nation's schools have adopted IAQ management programs consistent with EPA guidance. Many schools and districts with experience addressing IAQ problems and using IAQ TfS will offer support and guidance to schools and districts that are new to the program or to peers that are trying to resolve specific issues. Visit the IAQ TfS Mentor Network page to learn more about getting help from other schools and districts.
You can also learn from other schools and school districts by reading IAQ TfS case studies. The case studies describe many schools’ experiences implementing IAQ TfS. Each study focuses on some aspect of the process, such as working with school business officials to design an HVAC management policy that saves money and improves IAQ, to highlight lessons learned and helpful hints. Visit the Case Studies page to download case studies and learn more.
How Can I Learn More about School Design, Operations and Maintenance, and IAQ?
IAQ Design Tools for Schools
Learn more about school design, operations, and IAQ at EPA’s interactive Website that helps schools manage indoor environmental health through the building, renovation, operations, and maintenance processes: Visit the IAQ Design Tools for Schools Website.
Ensuring healthy IAQ means carefully considering such factors as maintenance of acceptable temperature and relative humidity, control of airborne contaminants, and distribution of adequate ventilated air. It requires deliberate care on the part of school designers, builders, and, ultimately, from the people who maintain and operate the facilities. Many of the most important determinants of building IAQ begin with good design and continue with proper building management.
To protect IAQ, schools need to consider many factors during the design phase of new building projects or renovations. Potential sources of contamination can be “built out” of a new facility.
Visit EPA’s IAQ Design Tools for Schools Website to learn more about designing for healthy school IAQ.
In addition to building design and construction, effective operations and maintenance procedures are critical to protect the investment in, and performance of, all building systems. Student health and productivity can suffer when building systems fail to operate as designed. Everyone in the school community benefits when facility operations and maintenance are an institutional priority. An effective maintenance plan should:
- Educate the staff on the value of maintenance and how a properly functioning facility can support the education of students
- Establish a budget, roles, responsibilities, and schedules for regular preventative maintenance
- Create a system to track work orders, maintenance performed, and costs for each piece of equipment
- Provide the maintenance staff with thorough operation and maintenance manuals, training, and equipment
How Can I Get the IAQ TfS Action Kit at No Cost?
Download parts of the Action Kit or place an order to receive a complete
Action Kit at
no cost at
epa.gov/iaq/schools/
toolkit.html
Yes. EPA provides a wide variety of materials at no cost for schools and districts to use to understand IAQ issues and ways to implement IAQ management programs at the district or individual school level. EPA makes many of its products available online for quick and easy download. You can also order materials from EPA and receive hard copies at no cost.
School facility staff may be be particularly interested in the materials described below. Please visit our Publications page to see all of the IAQ in schools materials that EPA can provide.
Learn More About IAQ and EPA’s Programs and Educate Others in Your School Community
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Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools Fact Sheet This fact sheet offers a brief overview of the concerns related to poor IAQ in schools and describes the Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools (IAQ TfS) Program, established by EPA in 1995. The IAQ TfS Program and related resources offer voluntary guidance for schools on how to implement and sustain a proactive IAQ management plan to identify, correct, and prevent IAQ problems to create and maintain healthy and safe learning environments.
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Benefits of Improving Air Quality in the Indoor Environment This full-color brochure describes the many benefits of using the Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools Program to improve IAQ and the quality of the learning environment. Benefits highlighted in the brochure include: successful outcomes in schools (i.e., health benefits and cost savings), research on IAQ and schools (i.e., cost savings, performance, and health effects), mold remediation, and asthma management. This brochure is a great companion guide to help school staff communicate the importance and benefits of improving IAQ in schools and to encourage upper level management and the community to adopt and support the IAQ TfS Program.
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Learn to Prevent and Address Mold Problems in Schools
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Mold in Schools Fact Sheet The Mold in School Fact Sheet provides an organized summary of information related to facts of mold growth in school buildings and portable classrooms. Concern about indoor exposure to mold has been increasing as the public becomes aware that exposure to mold can cause a variety of health effects and symptoms, including allergic reactions. Parents are especially concerned about the conditions of school buildings and how mold may affect their children. Because of the mold risk and media attention, school administrators should understand the mechanics of mold growth and take steps to avoid the moisture and mold problems.
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Mold Remediation
in Schools and Commercial Buildings This document presents guidelines for the remediation/cleanup of mold and moisture problems in schools and commercial buildings; these guidelines include measures designed to protect the health of building occupants and remediators. It has been designed primarily for building managers, custodians, and others who are responsible for commercial building and school maintenance. It should serve as a reference for potential mold and moisture remediators.
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Learn How to Manage Asthma in School Facilities
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Managing Asthma in the School Environment
This guide offers valuable information for all school staff, especially school nurses, teachers, and maintenance staff, on how to identify and control common environmental factors in schools that trigger asthma attacks. Resources include an "Asthma Action Card" which can serve as a daily asthma management plan. School nurses can share these resources with parents to raise awareness of asthma triggers and to help manage asthma at home and school effectively. Also included are easy tips for managing asthma in schools, including using the IAQ TfS Action Kit and Program to improve IAQ in the learning environment.
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Visit our Publications page to view a list of all IAQ in Schools publications and resources.
For information on radon in schools, visit www.epa.gov/radon.
For comprehensive information on all kinds of school environmental, health, and safety risks, be sure to visit EPA’s Healthy School Environments Website and check out the Healthy School Environments Assessment Tool (HealthySEAT) at www.epa.gov/schools/healthyseat/downloads1.html.
How Can I Order EPA Materials at No Cost?
You can order Indoor Air Quality publications from EPA's National Service Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP):
P.O. Box 42419
Cincinnati, OH 45242-0419
Website: www.epa.gov/nscep
Phone: 1-800-490-9198
Fax: (301) 604-3408
E-mail: nscep@bps-lmit.comNSCEP operates a Toll-free phone service for EPA Publication Assistance with live customer service representative assistance Monday through Friday from 9:00am-5:30pm eastern time. Voice Mail is available after operating hours. You can fax or e-mail your publication requests. For technical assistance with NSCEP web pages, write to: nscep_nepis.tech@epa.gov
Please use the EPA Document Number, which is usually bolded or highlighted, when ordering from NSCEP. See our list of publications at www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs
How Do I Order Other EPA Publications? Click Here
What is the IAQ TfS National Symposium and Should I Attend?
The IAQ TfS National Symposium is an in-person meeting of school board officials, school decision makers, school administrators, architects, school nurses, teachers, facility managers, school and health association members, parents, and others interested in maintaining good indoor air quality in our nation’s schools. The Symposium strives to present clear and simple information that school personnel need to understand how to implement IAQ TfS, maintain healthy school environments, and to create networks to facilitate information sharing between experts and among school communities. The Symposium also highlights key components that are common to successful IAQ management programs. Schools Districts that have implemented successful, award-winning IAQ management programs serve as Symposium faculty and share the steps they took to implement the IAQ TfS Program in their districts.
The Symposium provides an unparalleled opportunity to learn about topics associated with implementing an IAQ program in a school setting, such as:
- Communicating IAQ issues among stakeholders in the local community
- Designing, building, and maintaining healthy, high performing schools
- School commissioning
- Mold mitigation and moisture control
- Green cleaning and product selection
- Sustaining IAQ practices over time
- Materials selection and maintenance
- Asthma management
Please visit www.epa.gov/iaq/schools/symposium.html to learn more about the IAQ TfS National Symposium.