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CREATING SUSTAINABLE
SCHOOL ENVIROMENTAL
HEALTH IN OHIO
Ohio Department of HealthBureau of Environmental Health
School Environmental Health Program
http://1.usa.gov/1gEMVDn
For more information contact:
The Bureau of Environmental Health
School Environmental Health at:
614-466-4556
[email protected]
http://1.usa.gov/1gEMVDn
Over 1.75 million children and 100 thousand adultsacross Ohio
spend their days in K-12 schools1.The environmental health of these
facilities can
be strongly linked to the educational success ofOhios children.
Poor environmental conditions canthwart academic progress by making
it harder for
students to concentrate, causing or exacerbatingillness in
students and staff, increasing absencesand lost work days, and
diverting school funds to
pay for costly repair and remediation projects2.
On the other hand, improvement in school
environmental conditions can have significantpositive impacts.
For instance, in one studychildren in classrooms with higher
outdoor air
ventilation rates scored 14 to 15% higher onstandardized tests
than children in classrooms withlower outdoor air ventilation
rates3.
In addition to wellness and the advancementof the core
educational mission, attention to
environmental quality can improve the financialhealth of Ohios
schools. A study of one elementaryschool in Minnesota showed that
if $8,140
had been spent over 22 years on preventivemaintenance, $1.5
million in repairs could havebeen avoided4.
The purpose of this project is to assist Ohiosnearly 4,000 K-12
schools in evaluating, improving
and maintaining the environmental healthof their facilities.
Ultimately, improved schoolenvironmental health will enhance the
educational
environment leading to decreased absenteeism ofstudents and
staff, stronger academic performance(including higher test scores)
and long-term
financial return on investment5.
PURPOSE
1
http://nces.ed.gov/programs/stateprofiles/sresult.asp?mode=short&s1=392
http://www.eli.org/buildings/topics-school-environmental-health
3Shaughnessy, R., Haverinen-Shaughnessy, U., Nevalainen, A.,
& Moschandreas, D. (2006).A Preliminary study on the
association between ventilation rates in classrooms and
student performance. Indoor Air, 16, (6), 465-468.4
http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/indoorair/schools/5
http://www.21csf.org/csf-home/Documents/ResearchImpactSchoolFacilitiesFeb2010.pdf
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The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and SEHAP
will collaborate to provide at least one full dayof training for
Local Health Departments andeducational personnel. Training will
take place in
each of Ohios five regions and will focus on theimplementation
of the voluntary SEH Guidelines.
In order to reduce barriers to implementationand create demand
for SEH guidelines and
resources, ODH will use a variety of methods todisseminate
environmental health information.Educational and public health
organizations will
know that baseline implementation will be freeor low cost; the
implementation process will beuser-friendly, incorporating a
step-by-step format
which identifies and addresses the most pressingenvironmental
health issues; schools and LocalHealth Departments will have access
to a concise
assessment tool that is aligned to the guidelines.
Through the ongoing efforts of ODH and SEHAP, it
is hoped that a minimum of 30% of Ohios schoolswill choose to
implement the new SEH guidelines.
A statewide School Environmental Health Advisory
Panel (SEHAP) was formed in January, 2014. Thiscommittee is made
up of representatives fromeducational and public health
organizations. It
is facilitated by the Ohio Department of Health,Bureau of
Environmental Health.
This steering committee will develop SchoolEnvironmental Health
(SEH) guidelines,communicate the importance and benefits
of implementing the guidelines, and plan forsustainable SEH
activities in the future. Meetingswill be held twice a month
between January and
May of 2014 to review existing SEH resourcesand guidelines, plan
assessment of Ohios currentschool environmental health, and develop
new
Ohio-specific SEH guidelines.
Stakeholder input regarding SEH topics will be gatheredthrough a
variety of methods. Electronic submission
of comments will be available as well as two face-to-
face meetings with a virtual attendance option. This
information will be used in the formation of the
guidelines.Before the guidelines are completed, draft guidelines
will
be made available through OSHEN for further comment.
TRAIN
COMMUNICATE
IMPLEMENT
PROCESS
CREATE
CREATE
TRAIN
COMMUNICATE
IMPLEMENT
SUSTAIN A communications network called OSHEN (OhioSchools
Healthy Environments Network) willbe created consisting of Ohio
schools, majoreducational organizations, and other interested
stakeholders throughout the state. The purpose ofthis network
will be to offer training, collaboration,mentoring and sharing of
information related to
school environmental health.
Through quarterly meetings, online resources, and
social media members will receive support, updateson training
materials and opportunities, and alibrary of SEH tools.
Additionally, to sustain interest and maintain
expertise, ODH and SEHAP will create onlinewebinars which will
be current and topic specific foruse by individual schools and
districts. It is our hopethat these trainings will also provide a
forum for
individuals working on or with an interest in SEH toshare and
learn from each others experiences. Thesetraining opportunities
will be available to other state
SEH programs as well, increasing the positive impactof this
program and the resources it creates.
Finally, a tiered system of public recognition will bedeveloped
in order to recognize school districts in
their efforts to create healthier school environments.
SUSTAIN
Ohio Department of Health: Brueau of Environmental Health:
School Environmental Health
