AIR QUALITY DISTRICT SURVEY

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1	DISTRICT	AIR QUALITY
2	27J (Brighton, etc.)	All systems are currently and will continue to utilize air filtration filters that meet school safety guidelines Inside air within buildings is flushed with outside air two hours prior to students arriving and two hours after all students leave Technicians maximize the fresh air intake into all buildings while minimizing internal temperature discomfort We are currently evaluating the feasibility of the BEST Air Quality Improvement Grant.
3	Adams 12 Five Star	To date, we have purchased and installed 3,206 portable HEPA units for all classrooms and large common areas (there are approximately 2000 classrooms.) We added one per classroom up to 1000 sq ft (most classrooms are between 700-900 sq ft), then we added one for every 1,000 sq ft of large space or common areas. For example, if a cafeteria is 1800 sq ft we added 2 units. If a library was 3,500 sq ft we added 4. Additionally, where possible we have gone to a higher MERV filter.
4	Adams 14 (Commerce City)	The district installed MERV 11 air filters in all of our schools. The district does not have plans to purchase portable units through the state’s BEST grant program. It did purchase Synexis Spheres last year from CDE's Safe Schools Reopening Grant for every classroom. The sealing of the windows for security reasons have been addressed as a part of our ongoing maintenance work.
5	Aurora	We are grateful to our Aurora voters who have allowed us to equip all of our schools with modern HVAC systems that are high-functioning and well maintained through their support of bond campaigns in 2002, 2008 and 2016. In addition to ensuring that all HVAC systems are maintained and working properly, all of our HVAC systems are programmed to run two hours prior to the start of a typical day and two hours after the end of a typical day. We are also doubling the amount of fresh air into facilities throughout the day. This means that all of the interior air is being completely removed and replaced with fresh outside air multiple times each hour. This helps to ensure that any unwanted particles (including airborne viruses) in the building are removed as quickly as possible. Our protocols involve opening the outside air dampers to 30% which allows more fresh air in the classrooms and work spaces. Staff members in classrooms and offices also have the option to open windows to allow more fresh air in their spaces as needed. We have not purchased HEPA units, but will explore whether to apply for a BEST Air Quality Improvement grant during the next application cycle. We have not installed MERV 11 or 13 air filters in our existing HVAC systems. Our internal vetting of these filters revealed that they put excessive strain on the HVAC units and their motors, which creates the potential for the units to fail well before their end-of-life cycle.
6	Boulder Vally	In addition to outstanding work in ventilation generally, last winter break, we deployed portable air filtration units in every classroom, healthroom and isolation room in BVSD. You can see our Ventilation Protocols at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zVrDYDTzqOTwlZDGF30VLcIoXcI-d2dQ/view or in this video story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcYEzdidios Additionally, we continue to install the highest possible filtration in our HVAC systems. In most cases this is a MERV 11 filter. We have also installed air conditioning in all of our non-mountain schools and our windows have not been secured. Any operable windows, can be opened and closed. We are tracking CO2 levels in all of our buildings, which is a good indicator that we are exchanging the air at the rates identified by ASHRAE -- in partnership with the University of Tulsa and University of Colorado (as seen in the video story linked above.)
7	Cherry Creek	We installed MERV 13 filters in all schools last year. We have not installed HEPA filters. Our focus this year has been to sustain positive air flow through existing ventilation systems in schools. We run our HVAC systems for additional time to increase the number of times the air is exchanged over the course of a day. This is just one of our overlapping prevention strategies in place this year.
8	Colorado Springs D11	District 11 is not putting portable HEPA filtration into our classrooms for several reasons. These units tend to be a little noisy and can be disruptive in the classroom. The bigger the room, the bigger and noisier the unit. Additionally, they require periodic maintenance to clean and/or replace the filter…we don’t have the maintenance staff to do this and we’ve experienced difficulties placing more requirements on school-based staffs. Furthermore, introduction of these portable units will disrupt the air flow within a room and will pull air along a path to the unit. This airflow could spread contaminants from an infected individual to those along the air’s path. Existing air handling units circulate air such that potentially contaminated air is pulled upwards to the ceiling exhaust grates. Finally, the cost to implement is quite high when you add it all up. Using some even numbers, 2,000 classrooms with less expensive units costing $200 each requires $400,000 to purchase. Annual filter change at $100/filter is another $200,000/year. Electricity to run them is another $200/unit/year or another $400,000. Rough cost is $1 million for the first year to implement. District 11 currently uses MERV 8 filters on most of our HVAC systems. To install MERV 11 or MERV 13 filters would require a costly retrofit our systems to accommodate the thicker filters. Additionally, our current equipment is not sized to move the required air volume through these filters so the resultant strain on the equipment would lead to premature equipment failure. These additional costs are not within our ability to fund as District 11 currently has a backlog of $170 million in HVAC requirements. Instead, District 11 chose to increase the amount of outside air that we introduce into our buildings to increase the number of air exchanges we do. During last summer, we spent over $400,000 to systematically inspect, repair and reprogram every air handling unit within the District to allow this. Our building automation systems to run longer and harder to bring in outside air up to 2 times faster than required by code which required an additional filter change.
9	Denver	DPS does not have HEPA units installed district wide. Discussions are ongoing with a possible resolution by the end of August. DPS has about 5,000 classrooms and 200 schools. A team from CU Boulder surveyed 20 schools and examined 75 classrooms with the most common architectural features that are found districtwide. That identified which classrooms needed a HEPA filter. DPS has set aside funds in the federal stimulus program for ventilation and air quality. There is the possibility of DPS applying for a state BEST grant to pay for additional air filter units, though BEST criteria require a demonstration of need and, given the district’s bond program and bonding capacity, it is more of a challenge for DPS to be selected. The district did spend $5 million in HVAC system upgrades last summer. The district plans to spend $25 million more on upgrades next summer. Systems that were capable of taking MERV 13 filters were upgraded, and we are continuing that. Please note that many of the univents (the air supply for classrooms) are not able to accommodate MERV 11 or 13 filters, but we did work to increase the amount of outside air we are bringing in. The majority of our schools have operable windows.
10	Douglas County	Douglas County School District has provided HEPA units in the highest occupancy rooms district-wide. In accordance with CDC and ASHRAE guidance, for compatible HVAC systems and while minimizing filter air bypass, HVAC filters have been upgraded to MERV 13 air filters. DCSD is submitting for a BEST grant (to pay for portable HEPA filters). In addition, DCSD distributed over 250 portable units prior to the 2020-2021 school year in high occupancy areas of schools. All windows are routinely assessed and maintained.
11	Durango	We purchased a large number of HEPA filters to go into all spaces that didn't have access to fresh air last year. We are also continuing to address HVAC systems and improve them through the use of bond dollars.
12	Eagle County	We haven't installed filters or made changes to systems, except to increase the air intake. We are currently analyzing systems to add air conditioning and have relaxed policies regarding the opening of windows. We have utilized BEST grants in the past for various things like security and roofing but are not currently pursuing the purchase of portable units through the grant.
13	Elizabeth School District	Elizabeth School District has had portable HEPA filters in almost every classroom, office, counselor’s room and meeting room, since September 2020, following global health experts’ recommendations. People who wanted more than one unit in their room got them. The district did an analysis of all the HVAC systems and placed the highest quality MERV 13 filters in all systems. It increased the amount of outdoor air by 25 percent. The district set all of the systems to run continuously while the buildings were occupied versus turning on and off based on temperatures. When possible, windows are opened. The district uses classroom CO2 monitors, as recommended, which has helped the district maintain indoor air quality at levels recommended by experts. The district bought canopies for outdoor classes, especially for band and choir classes. The 2,000-student district was in-person every day last year in full classrooms, except for one week after Thanksgiving for high school students. One or two students got COVID at school last year.
14	Englewood	All of our schools are less than 6 years old and meet or exceed CDC outdoor air exchange requirements. We also use MERV 8 air filters in all buildings that we change out quarterly or after a positive COVID case is reported in one of our buildings. My understanding is that the higher MERVs place more strain on equipment.
15	Falcon School District 49	No response.
16	Greely-Evans School District (Weld)	No response.
17	Harrison 2	We have been waiting on the approval of ESSER II funds to be able to order these. That funding just came through last week and these are in the procurement process (order placed) and will be installed when they arrive.
18	Jefferson County	Jefferson County Public Schools sees issues with portable (HEPA) units. • We would need about 6000 to serve classrooms, libraries and gym or other student spaces • Maintaining and storing the units would be an issue • Annual service, filter changes, on-going and first cost would be expensive • The portables produce limited air changes • The portables produce noise in the classroom • The portables disrupt viral plumes and our HVAC return system’s ability to remove them. • We view portables as a short term solution that would be prone to abuse and abandonment • We are researching a centralized filtration system in the HVAC that would have lower operational costs, lower maintenance requirements, and would provide long term indoor air quality improvement beyond the pandemic. What we have done: https://www.jeffcopublicschools.org/services/facilities • We have upgraded to MERV 10 and 11 filters (10 vs 11 is determined by the equipment and its age. MERV 13 creates too much resistance and has a detrimental impact on the equipment.) • We have significantly increased the amount of outside air our systems use, resulting in less return air being recirculated. • We have increased AM and PM system run times to flush the building before and after use. • We replaced older window systems with energy efficient ones during the 2012 bond. We don’t seal windows, but we do limit the amount they open for security reasons. https://wp-cpr.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2021/08/CPR-Air-Filtration-Responses-8_20_2021.pdf
19	Littleton	When determining what filters and changes we needed to make to our systems last year we worked with many outside entities including Tri-County, local engineers that were familiar with our system capabilities and our filter supplier. It was determined that the best action was to continue using our existing filters (MERV- 8's and 9's), increase the frequency of our filter changes, and make adjustments to our dampers to allow as much outside air in as possible while maintaining a comfortable learning environment. Based on measurements we have taken throughout the district, we have exceeded the public health experts' recommendations of 3ACH and we did not want this compromised. When evaluating replacing filters with higher MERV rated filters, it was determined some of our units would not accept a thicker filter, while others could but at the cost of restricting air flow. We also are encouraging opening operable windows when outside temperatures reasonably allow. Those practices will continue this year.
20	Mapleton	Portable units have been installed in every classroom and office area in the district. Almost every building has a MERV 13 or higher filter. There are two facilities that have MERV 8 filtration, but again, each room also has a portable high efficiency air filtration unit. At this time, we do not have plans to apply for the BEST grant (to pay for additional portable HEPA filter units.)
21	Manitou Springs	Manitou Springs School District 14 is utilizing the air filters that meet the safety guidelines set by ASHRAE. We are ensuring the buildings are purged for two hours prior to our school start time and using maximum fresh air into the buildings when occupied. The district is purging the building for two hours at the end of each day. We have purchased HEPA filters in portable units for those who want them in the classrooms. We have purchased portable AC units for those who want them in the classrooms.
22	Mesa County Valley D51	We have installed HEPA filtered equipment in some classrooms where getting adequate outside air exchanges was difficult. We also installed MERV 13 filters in our systems that were able to accommodate them. In all of our systems we increased the amount of air exchanges and the percentage of outside air. We have pursued grant funding to pay for some of this equipment and the high efficiency filters, and we are looking at BEST and other grants for funds to upgrade or replace more of our HVAC equipment.
23	Pueblo 60 (city)	We have upgraded our air filtration systems in our schools that have full ventilation systems. This accounts for roughly 80% of our properties. Those schools without filtration systems are lacking air conditioning would require large (and very loud) fans that would overload our power capacities. Unfortunately, the schools without full HVAC systems also do not have the electrical capacity to accommodate these high powered fans.
24	Pueblo 70 (county)	We are still looking at the grant information and will discuss it in our superintendent council meeting. We currently use MERV 8 filters, but are working to purchase upgraded filters.
25	Sheridan	Portable air filtration units have been installed in every classroom paid for with a grant program. The current filtration system uses MERV 11s. Windows are able to be opened where possible.
26	Thompson	No response.
27	St. Vrain Valley	St. Vrain Valley Schools has MERV 11 filters in all school HVAC units, and classrooms have a full air exchange every 15 minutes.
28	Westminster	We have not done upgrades to air filtration systems specific to COVID-19 and have not purchased portable units. We do not have a BEST grant in. We did not install MERV 11 or higher systems and are instead focused on the masking, vaccination and information campaigns. Older systems are not usually compatible with high end MERV systems because they cannot push clean air through them. All of our recent remodels have included ventilation upgrades, but these predated COVID.
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