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Parents and Children
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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. Learn more about this exciting tool.
What Should I Know about School IAQ and Children’s Health?
EPA’s Indoor Air Quality Tools for Schools Program is designed to inform school communities about IAQ issues, the link between poor IAQ and some health problems, and ways to manage IAQ in schools to promote safe and healthy school environments. IAQ in schools is important because good IAQ can promote student, teacher, and staff health and performance, while poor IAQ in schools can lead to health problems and diminished performance. Failure to prevent or quickly resolve IAQ problems can:
- Increase the potential for short-term and long-term health problems (e.g., asthma, the number one cause of student absenteeism)
- Increase student, teacher, and staff absenteeism
- Reduce student, teacher, and staff productivity
- Accelerate deterioration and reduce efficiency of heating/cooling equipment
- Strain relationships among school administration, teacher, parents, and staff
- Create potential liability problems
The IAQ TfS Program provides information on common IAQ problems in schools, common pollutant sources and related health effects, and solutions for addressing and preventing IAQ problems to maintain healthy school environments.
News headlines indicate that schools across the country experience a wide range of indoor air problems; some problems even lead to school evacuations and emergency renovations. In February 1995 the U.S. General Accounting Office reported that 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.
Schools face a variety of potential IAQ problems, and every school’s IAQ is different. Schools may experience IAQ 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) (formaldehyde, solvents, 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 the Schools, IAQ, and Health page of this Website to learn more.
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 all environmental health risks in schools and no-cost tools, guidance, and support for maintaining healthy school environments. The Healthy Schools Website covers indoor environmental issues and outdoor risks, water and air-based risks, materials selection, 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 and management at school, diesel fumes from school buses, and much, much more.
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Find Information on Healthy School Environments Faster
Fact Sheet This fact sheet offers a brief overview of the Healthy School Environments Website. EPA created the Website as a "one stop shop" to provide valuable information for facility managers, school administrators, school nurses, parents, architects, engineers, teachers, students, and the general community on various school environmental health and safety topics important to improving the quality of school facilities. Included on the Website are links to environmental health and safety resources developed by EPA, other federal agencies, state and local governments, and non-government organizations.
A software tool is now available to assist school districts establish and manage comprehensive school facility self-assessment programs. The Healthy School Environments Assessment Tool (HealthySEAT) contains a fully integrated environmental health and safety checklist and is designed to be easily customized to reflect state and local requirements and policies. Go to the HealthySeat Website |
How Can IAQ Affect Health and Performance?
EPA's studies of human exposure to air pollutants indicate that indoor levels of pollutants may be two to five times, and occasionally more than 100 times, higher than outdoor levels, and exposure to indoor pollutants can cause serious health effects.
Common health effects related to poor IAQ include headache, dizziness, nausea, allergy attacks, respiratory problems, and sometimes life-threatening conditions, such as Legionnaire’s disease, carbon monoxide poisoning, and severe asthma attacks. To learn more, visit the Common Symptoms page of this Website.
There is substantial evidence that indoor environmental exposure to allergens, such as dust mites, other pests, and molds, can trigger asthma symptoms. School-aged children spend a great deal of time inside school buildings, and it is critical that schools control environmental asthma triggers. Visit the Managing Asthma in Schools page of this Website to learn about steps schools can take to manage environmental asthma triggers.
A school with good IAQ is one that controls levels of airborne pollutants, provides adequate fresh air for occupants, and manages temperature and humidity. Good IAQ contributes to a favorable learning environment for students, performance of teachers and staff, and a sense of comfort, health, and well-being. Visit the Student Performance page of this Website to learn more about how IAQ affects student performance, teacher performance, and school productivity in general.
How Can I Protect Indoor Air Quality at My Child's School?
Use EPA’s materials and Website to learn about IAQ issues, related health effects, and how student performance is affected by poor IAQ. Equip yourself with EPA’s materials to help you explain IAQ issues and promote EPA’s no-cost, voluntary programs to other parents, community organizers, and your school community. Follow the tips in the IAQ TfS Action Kit about how to communicate about IAQ issues to build momentum for a school environmental health project. And, consider volunteering to help your child’s school coordinate an IAQ management effort. In partnership with your child, your health care professional, other parents, and your school community, you can use EPA’s resources and guidance to help maintain your school as a healthy and safe place where your child can learn. Learn more about the comprehensive IAQ TfS Action Kit.
The most effective School IAQ Management teams often include a concerned parent who is passionate about protecting children from environmental health threats. Use your voice to promote school IAQ management and other environmental health issues in schools. As a parent, you can make a powerful case for protecting children’s health from environmental risks everywhere they spend their time.
How Can I Manage My Child’s Asthma at School?
A recent study by the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI) found that 41 percent of the children with asthma surveyed had as many as three asthma episodes each month at school. If your child has asthma, you can take steps to reduce their risk of exposure to environmental asthma triggers in schools.
The first step is to know your child’s environmental triggers. People respond differently to different environmental triggers, so it is important to work with your health care professional to diagnose the environmental triggers that may cause problems for your child. You can use EPA’s guide for parents of children with asthma, Help Your Child Gain Control Over Asthma, to learn more about environmental asthma triggers and how to discuss your child’s triggers with your health care professional. The brochure includes:
- Information on common environmental triggers found in homes and schools;
- Suggestions for determining if certain triggers affect your child;
- Tips on how to discuss environmental triggers with your health care professional and get your child’s triggers diagnosed; and
- Recommended steps you can take to control your child’s exposure to environmental triggers at home and at school.
Once you know which environmental triggers cause problems for your child, make sure to communicate what you know with your child’s school teachers and nurses.
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Help Your
Child Gain Control Over Asthma This low-literacy asthma management guide provides parents of children with asthma with the information they need to improve their children's quality of life. It is filled with tips on managing asthma by developing a management plan and following some simple steps to minimize exposure to asthma triggers found indoors and out. The brochure includes helpful visuals that display how to implement the suggested steps.
Ayude a su niño a controlar el asma
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For materials you can share with your child's school, download the IAQ Tools for Schools Bulletin on Asthma and Allergies and the Managing Asthma in Schools brochure.
Does EPA Provide Materials at No Cost to Help Parents Understand IAQ and School Health?
Yes. EPA provides a wide variety of materials designed for parents to help them understand IAQ and school health. EPA makes many of their products available online for quick and easy download. You can also order materials from EPA and they will send you hard copies at no cost.
Parents may be particularly interested in some of the materials described below. Please visit the Publications page to see all of the IAQ in Schools materials EPA can provide.
Use These Products to Learn More about IAQ Issues Schools Face
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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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Indoor Air Quality and Student Performance
Fact Sheet Revised in August 2003, this fact sheet offers the latest information and data about poor indoor air quality (IAQ), it causes, health consequences, and solutions. The quality of indoor air declines when schools fail to follow simple practices that help to maintain a safe and healthy indoor environment. Recent data and evidence show that exposure to poor IAQ can cause or exacerbate illnesses, especially asthma and allergies, in children and adults. In addition, poor IAQ can reduce a person's ability to perform specific mental tasks requiring concentration, calculation, or memory. This fact sheet is a good resource to help school administrators understand that good indoor air quality can enhance student performance, a key measure of success for schools.
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Products to Help You Market IAQ Management Programs to Your School Community
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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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Teach Parents and Caregivers to Manage Asthma at School
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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 Kit and Program to improve IAQ in the learning environment.
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IAQ Tools for Schools - Actions to Improve IAQ
EPA designed this colorful tri-fold brochure as the primary resource to market the IAQ TfS Program to school staff and other stakeholders. This brochure includes insert cards with guidance and action items for facility managers, teachers, administrators, and health professionals on how to implement the program and improve IAQ in schools.
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Visit the Publications page to view a list of all IAQ in Schools publications and resources.
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