Science Center Receives EPA Grant to Promote Healthy Schools

The regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Don Welsh, today presented the Science Centers MidAtlantic Environmental Hygiene Resource Center (MEHRC) with a $75,000 grant to support training programs designed to improve indoor air quality in schools throughout the mid-Atlantic region.

PHILADELPHIA, PA (Sept. 30, 2003): The regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Don Welsh, today presented the Science Centers MidAtlantic Environmental Hygiene Resource Center (MEHRC) with a $75,000 grant to support training programs designed to improve indoor air quality in schools throughout the mid-Atlantic region.

We are pleased to continue and expand our long-standing partnership with MEHRC with this grant," said Welsh, who leads Region 3 of the EPA, encompassing the mid-Atlantic states and the District of Columbia.

MEHRC is a program of the Science Center that provides indoor air quality training to the building management industry and others who are interested in operating healthy buildings. MEHRC Director Charlotta Thunander said the EPA grant will be used to support a program that offers specialized training for principals, teachers, custodians, school nurses and the public on how to ensure healthy schools.

We bring together national experts in the field of indoor air quality and provide training directly to those who can make a difference in the everyday operation of schools," Thunander said. We offer practical training to those who can use the information most."

According to Thunander, schools throughout the region are experiencing a range of environmental issues-everything from mold to poor ventilation and outgassing from carpets and furniture.

It's not that schools are inherently unhealthier than other buildings we live and work in," she said. It's just that with resources stretched, most school districts are having difficulty responding to these issues."

Welsh agreed that the environmental conditions of area schools was an important issue. The leading cause of lost school days for children is asthma-related incidences," he said. Poor indoor air quality can be an asthma trigger. Providing a healthy environment for both students and faculty is not just a health issue, its also a learning issue."

About MEHRC: The MidAtlantic Environmental Hygiene Resource Center is a program of the Science Center that provides Indoor Air Quality training to a nationwide audience of building managers and other professionals interested in building and maintaining healthy environments.(www.MEHRC.org)

The Science Centers mission is to grow regional wealth by developing knowledge communities that fuse talent, capital and opportunity. Since 1963, the Science Center has supported the commercialization of technology and the growth of technology entrepreneurship-helping to launch over 350 technology companies. (www.ScienceCenter.org)