Dive Brief:
- K-12 school districts is gaining access to a suite of tools for monitoring air quality and energy and water use at their schools in a program launched by technology company Attune.
- The company enlisted the help of the International WELL Building Institute, Center for Green Schools, Green Schools National Network and the 21st Century School Fund to select 14 school districts to receive its technology in a program it calls the Future-Ready Facilities Grant.
- The recipients get access to the company’s smart monitoring technology, data dashboards and implementation support, the company says.
Dive Insight:
Attune uses sensors and its data platform to help facility managers gain insights into the performance of building systems so they can detect issues early and make informed decisions about air quality, energy and infrastructure, the company says.
Poor indoor air quality, inefficient energy systems and undetected water issues impact student health and can impede academic performance, research shows.
In one study, student learning performance improved by 5% and daily attendance by 2.5% in schools where air quality was improved through carbon dioxide reductions, according to a paper published in Building and Environment in 2020.
In another study, increasing ventilation rates up to 25 liters per second per person was found to improve attendance and reduce respiratory illnesses and symptoms of sick building syndrome.
Schools are among the most critical building types that need healthy building improvements, according to Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., the sponsor of a bill to protect students, staff and visitors from poor IAQ.
For many districts, particularly those trying to manage their buildings with limited budgets, using data and smart technology will be an untested experience, Mary Filardo, founder and executive director of the 21st Century School Fund, said in a statement.
"Monitoring building conditions and environmental performance is still a relatively new focus for many schools and districts,” Filardo said. “[Selected districts’] participation in this partnership will make an important contribution as schools continue to discover how data-driven insights can support informed decision-making, improve facility operations, and enhance outcomes for students and staff."
Improving indoor air quality is a top concern among many school districts. For example, the James Otis Elementary School in East Boston completed building upgrades earlier this year that the city says will improve student health and classroom comfort while reducing the school’s carbon emissions.
The building retrofit, which the city calls a first of its kind for Boston Public Schools, consisted of upgrading the building’s electrical system capacity, installing heat pumps and HEPA filtration units and improving lighting, among other things. The upgrades were funded through city investment, state program funding and utility incentives aimed at improving the energy efficiency and resilience of municipal buildings.
For its program, Attune says, it worked with the nonprofit groups to evaluate school districts based on need, potential impact and readiness to implement building monitoring systems.
The recipients are Ann Arbor Public Schools in Michigan; Arbor Park School District 145 in Oak Forest, Illinois; Bemidji Area Schools ISD31 in Minnesota; Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Charlotte, North Carolina; Detroit Public Schools Community District in Michigan; Fayette County Public Schools in Lexington, Kentucky; Fayetteville Public Schools in Arkansas; Henrico County Public Schools in Virginia; Hillsboro School District 1J in Oregon; Long Beach Unified School District in California; Metro Nashville Public Schools in Tennessee; Milwaukee Public School District in Wisconsin; the School District of Philadelphia; and Wichita Public Schools, USD 259 in Kansas.
