Research team management, indoor environmental quality assessment, and K-12 curriculum integration
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a research grant to CSU to inform K-12 school building design, construction, and operation practices to foster safe and healthy school environments. Over a five-year period, IBE partnered with faculty partners from CSU’s Departments of Sociology and of Environmental & Radiological Health, and Colorado’s Adams 12 Schools to answer the question, “Do sustainably retrofitted schools have a positive impact on human performance compared to conventional schools?”
Focusing on indoor air quality and indoor environmental quality, the cross-disciplinary team assessed the impacts of sustainable retrofits in nine K-12 schools on student health and academic achievement, and on employee health and work satisfaction. IBE managed the research team, measured indoor environmental quality indicators, designed and facilitated student and staff occupancy surveys, and led a collaboration with K-12 teachers to develop project-based learning modules that address IAQ/IEQ. The team’s summary of research outcomes is available on the EPA website.
Key Outcomes
- Quantified the human benefits of green retrofits
- Informed policy and priorities for Adams 12 Schools’ facility and operational improvements
- Created K-12 project-based labs on indoor environmental quality
Deliverables
- Final EPA report
- Multiple research publications