Each building is unique, but the primary strategies are to help mitigate virus spread and improve the ventilation in our indoor learning and living  environments. To help ensure this, a combination of innovative technology solutions, strategies and services can be leveraged depending on your specific needs, age of the buildings, etc.

That’s why it’s important to have a partner who is experienced and knowledgeable with ASHRAE standards, as well as having the latest toolset of proven technology solutions and strategies in-hand.

Download Guidelines for K12 Schools Flyer

Download Guidelines for Colleges and Universities Flyer

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The American Rescue Plan includes nearly $170 billion for education. This is in addition to the two previous pieces of legislation passed in 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act (CRRSA).
 

The Department of Education emphasize the importance of proper school ventilation in their report.

Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER II) Fund

Higher Education Emergency Relief (HEERF II) Fund

Governor's Emergency Education Relief (GEER II) Fund

Given new evidence on the B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant, the CDC recommends universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status. Children should return to full-time in-person learning in the fall with layered prevention strategies in place. This is in agreement with the latest recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics which urges in-person learning, but with updated masking. The latest recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics urges in-person learning, but with updated masking for schools.

Find the American College Health Association Considerations for Reopening IHE for Fall 2021.

CDC Recommendations and Resources

Updated Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools

CDC Operational Strategy for K-12 Schools through Phased Mitigation

CDC Resources for Higher Education

CDC Guidelines for Ventilation in Buildings

According to the U.S. Green Building’s Council IAQ Schools Survey and Report (Released April 29, 2021), "As schools re-open and develop health and safety plans to mitigate airborne transmission of COVID-19, many are prioritizing and upgrading current HVAC systems to provide the highest indoor air quality for building occupants," said Corey Metzger, ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force Schools team lead. "We know that improved indoor air quality has a positive impact on student performance and general well-being and I’m hopeful that more schools will consider and implement the guidance provided by ASHRAE."

ASHRAE Guidance
Preparation in the Pandemic: How Schools Implemented Air Quality Measures to Protect Occupants from COVID-19

Core Recommendations for Reducing Airborne Infectious Aerosol Exposure

ASHRAE Guidance for Building Operations During the COVID-19 Pandemic

ASHRAE: Guidelines for Schools and Universities

As education returns to facilities, navigating decisions on building operations has proven to be extremely challenging. Learn how to implement the latest ASHRAE & CDC recommendations to your HVAC control sequences and help ensure systems are functioning properly without extensive building commissioning; leverage machine learning to create healthier indoor environments without compromising occupant comfort, and how to continue to get value from these strategies moving forward.

The impact of occupant health based on indoor air quality (IAQ) can significantly affect a building’s ability to reopen and stay open in the future. Solving these challenges requires a new way of thinking in facility management. State-of-the-art digital building technologies make sense of data stored in devices and systems, reducing data complexity, and automating data handling to deliver real-time building intelligence for smarter, more responsive building decisions that keep occupant health top of mind.

As the pandemic shut down campuses across the country, higher education institutions have faced unprecedented financial strain. Now with billions in federal funding available to colleges and universities to promote student health and academic success, administrators are making tough decisions on how best to balance these resources with the tremendous need across all areas.

Innovative technology can rock your students’ world and yours, too! With challenging times, come leaps forward in innovation & technology. An IoT platform can address COVID-related issues now and deliver ongoing benefits for your building and classroom – even with lesson plans.  In addition to efficiencies & savings from updated lighting, controls, HVAC controls and space utilization, an IoT platform can offer a living lab for students & educators, to prepare them for the work force of tomorrow.

The debate over reopening America's classrooms has picked up steam, with concerned educators, parents, and policymakers all navigating how to safely return to in-person learning. The CDC recently announced their recommendation on school re-openings and making decisions based on community transmission rates. 

Why it matters: From air circulation and temperature testing to how the government is supporting these efforts, learn about the safety protocols are being implemented and how.

Learn about creative financing strategies trending nationally in Higher Ed to plan and execute campus improvements. Adaptive financing approaches make projects feasible and can reframe strategic planning and budgeting long-term to combat significant deferred maintenance backlogs that strain equipment and staff, impair building comfort, and prevent campus modernization.