Grantee Research Project Results
2015 Progress Report: Baltimore Healthy Schools: Impact of Indoor Air Quality on Health and Performance
EPA Grant Number: R835639Title: Baltimore Healthy Schools: Impact of Indoor Air Quality on Health and Performance
Investigators: McCormack, Meredith , Bettencourt, Amie , Williams, D’Ann , Connolly, Faith , Curriero, Frank , Leaf, Phillip
Current Investigators: McCormack, Meredith , Leaf, Phillip , Curriero, Frank , Connolly, Faith , Koehler, Kirsten
Institution: The Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore Education Research Consortium , Baltimore City Schools
Current Institution: The Johns Hopkins University , Baltimore City Schools , Baltimore Education Research Consortium
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: December 18, 2014 through October 31, 2018 (Extended to October 31, 2019)
Project Period Covered by this Report: November 1, 2014 through October 31,2016
Project Amount: $997,822
RFA: Healthy Schools: Environmental Factors, Children’s Health and Performance, and Sustainable Building Practices (2013) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Children's Health , Human Health
Objective:
The objective of this research is to assess the impact that indoor air and outdoor quality can have on student achievement, student health and overall school climate and to document that impact on indoor air quality and school performance indicators associated with modernization of school facilities in Baltimore City.
Progress Summary:
Outputs of Years 1 and 2:
Phase I
In Year 1 and Year 2 of the study, we have focused our Phase I efforts on obtaining and analyzing existing de-identified student outcomes data through Baltimore Education Research Consortium’s Memorandum of Understanding with Baltimore City Schools. We are in the process of drafting our analytical models and reviewing descriptive statistics using these data and community-level environmental variables. In the coming year, we plan to finalize our models, run our final analyses, and prepare a manuscript for submission to the peer-reviewed literature.
Phase II
During the first year of the award period, the study team had a series of planning meetings. Due to personnel changes in Baltimore City School District, it took longer than anticipated to identify a representative of Baltimore City Schools to collaborate on this work. Shane Hall, the Director of Research Services, has now joined our research team. He has provided support in engaging schools that have been identified to undergo renovations as part of the 21st Century School Buildings Initiative. We have also had several meetings with representatives from the 21st Century School Buildings Initiatives and have built a productive working relationships with this group. Since receiving IRB approval from Baltimore City Public Schools in July 2015, environmental monitoring has been conducted in seven schools (2- or 4-weeks per school) scheduled to undergo facility improvement within the next two to three years. We have also engaged students in three classrooms in a hands-on educational activity centered on indoor climate. All data collection thus far has focused on capturing pre-intervention, baseline data. Measurements have been taken in multiple seasons where possible, but this has not always been the case due to equipment limitations and standardized testing within the district. Of these seven schools, five will be vacated for construction following the 2015-2016 school year.
Future Activities:
Moving forward, Phase II data collection will continue to focus on obtaining pre-intervention environmental measurements, as most of the district’s facility improvement projects have not yet transitioned to their construction phases. With newly-acquired supplemental monitoring equipment, we plan to capture additional seasonal measurements as much as is possible throughout the 2016-2017 academic year. Phase I data analysis will continue as described in earlier sections. We anticipate that our first post-intervention measurements will be captured in the Fall 2017.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 20 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
children’s respiratory health, community partnership, school practice, mediators, particulates, surveys, test scores, attendanceProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.