Leadership Matters December 2014

Environmental issues rise to the forefront in Illinois

314.809.0816 or by email at ematoushek@iasaedu.org . This kit helps schools personnel identify, solve and prevent indoor air quality in the school environment. Through a multi-step management plan and checklists for the entire building, schools can lower the risk of student exposure to asthma triggers (especially animals and mold) and other environmental hazards. The kit covers the buildings ventilation system, maintenance procedures, classrooms and food service areas. Many schools have coordinating teams to implement the IAQ Tools for Schools. Because air quality problems can originate anywhere in the school building, the entire staff is typically informed and brought into the process, and students can be involved, too, in curricular areas. Further information about IAQ curricula can be found on the EPA’s web site ( www.epa.gov/iaq/schools ). Schools now need to be proactive in this issue. Currently, the only regulatory requirements for environmental issues facing schools is for asbestos. While schools have been dealing with the asbestos issues, other environmental issues have arisen to include carbon monoxide and mold, among others such as indoor air quality, lead in water and radon. All of these environmental issues can affect the health of the both students and staff. By adopting a proactive stance, schools can avoid the embarrassing, unforeseen emergencies that arise and cause so much public concern. These emergencies put the districts and administrators squarely in the public eye for quick action. I submit that these future emergencies could be avoided or at least mitigated with a full-scale Indoor Air Quality Program. When I discuss indoor air quality, one of the concerns is “What about the cost?” Whether from concern about direct expenses related to the purchase of equipment or indirect expenses involving staff time, allocating time and effort for a new project means shifting resources. Full-scale Indoor Air Quality programs can be utilized by districts with minimal resources. While these costs for a IAQ program are relatively minimal, in an era of tight budgets and restricted school funding, it becomes important to recognize creative ways to tap into alternative sources of revenue to improve the indoor environment. The IAQ program that our district implemented was innovative and not expensive to implement.

As a former school superintendent, I know numerous factors influence children’s ability to learn. Students cannot learn when they are hungry, feel threatened or have difficulty breathing. Asthma is the most common chronic childhood disease, affecting more than 227,000 school-age children in Illinois. It

Dr. Bill Phillips IASA Field Services Director

contributes to absenteeism, which can negatively impact academic performance. While I was a superintendent, we had an opportunity to improve the school environment and make it a better place to learn and work – without busting the budget. Poor indoor air quality (IAQ) in schools can lead to any number of short-term or long-term health problems for both students and staff. Students tend to be more susceptible to the risks of poor IAQ because their bodies ae still developing and they have relatively higher rates of breathing and metabolism. IAQ is becoming increasingly costly for schools due to the potential for expensive investigations, higher heating and cooling costs, and increased liability. More importantly, high rates of absenteeism due to asthma or other ailments are costs to the learning environment. High absenteeism can be disruptive to classrooms and ultimately undermines the school’s mission of educating children. However, these problems are not insurmountable. Many resources can provide practical and economical solutions to IAQ problems. In order to improve air quality in schools. In an attempt to get out ahead of environmental issues such as the proposed new mandate that would require schools to install carbon monoxide detectors, IASA has partnered with Environmental Consultants, Inc. on a free program to assist school districts. The program, called “Tools for Schools,” includes a kit to help school districts develop a framework for managing buildings and mitigating environmental issues. As part of the program, Environmental Consultants, Inc. is providing a consultant for IASA member districts to call upon for assistance. The consultant, Elizabeth Matoushek, can be reached at

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