Lenoir County Public Schools leveraged around $14m in ESSER funding into school and classroom ventilation and air purification improvements in an effort to protect students and teachers from transmission of airborne threats including COVID-19.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 19, 2022

Kinston, NC: Lenoir County Public Schools (LCPS) recently announced the purchase and installation of more than 1,000 AirBox air purification units throughout 15 school buildings in the district. This milestone achievement was the largest and most complex element of Phase 2 of the district’s plan to increase safety and mitigate disruptions to learning due to the coronavirus pandemic.

These efforts were completed thanks to the on-the-ground installation services provided by AirBox distributor BOX Pure Air and their sub-distributor, Carolina Coastal Supply Company.  Ryan Cowell, BOX Pure Air CEO, comments on the achievement:

“The delivery and installation of these units is a victory for everyone involved, ourselves and Lenoir county, but ultimately the students and teachers who will benefit from better indoor air quality. As we enter March, asthma and allergy season is already beginning. The goal is to keep students and teachers healthy and in the classroom during the most crucial part of the school year.”

Assistant Superintendent of Lenoir County Public Schools Nicholas Harvey II explained the district’s approach to implementation: “Nothing has occurred by happenstance. Every purchase, every hire is intentional to support our students and staff.”

The school district divided its improvement and mitigation efforts into four phases. Phase 1 began as soon as students returned to classrooms and took the form of face masks, hand sanitizer, and additional cleaning personnel and procedures. Phase 2 took more logistics planning as it included the planning, purchase, and installation of over 1,000 AirBox air purification units as well as 54 new water fountains with bottle-filling capabilities.

The AirBox units used in the LCPS deployment include AirBox Apex 2.0 units placed in larger spaces like cafeterias and gymnasiums and AirBox Peak and Mesa units deployed in classroom and office spaces.

Using commercial-grade HEPA air filtration to mitigate transmission risks has become a widely endorsed strategy in schools and other public spaces. It’s one of two mitigation strategies identified early in the pandemic, the other being increasing outdoor air ventilation. 

This twofold strategy has been widely studied and reaffirmed throughout the course of the pandemic. A recent plan from the Biden White House, the National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan, calls upon all building owners and operators, including schools, colleges, and universities, to adopt key strategies to improve indoor air quality and reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Two key tenets of this plan are to optimize fresh air ventilation and to enhance air filtration and cleaning using both the central HVAC system and in-room air cleaning devices. The challenge is that doing either of these in public school buildings is often difficult: many spaces have sealed windows that cannot open, and it’s often laborious to access and modify the ductwork in older buildings.

AirBox air purifiers, which can be implemented quickly as freestanding units or configured with ductwork, are a critically important solution to the problem of school indoor air quality.

Meredith Teague, president of AirBox, added this:

“We’re so proud of the dedication shown by the team at BOX Pure Air as they worked with Lenoir County Public Schools to facilitate this comprehensive deployment of the AirBox portable air purification units in Lenoir County Public Schools which represents the culmination of a nearly 10-month sales cycle. The federal government has and continues to provide multiple levels of funding to address improving indoor air quality in buildings and our nation’s schools. LCPS’ use of ESSER funding demonstrates their understanding of the importance of safe air in school buildings. The action of the district leadership ensures that students throughout the county are breathing cleaner, safer air every day they go to school.”

Now that the district has completed Phase 2 of its mitigation and remediation plan, it’s ready to move to Phase 3, which involves the expansion of mental health and emotional support resources. By making its spaces safer through better air filtration, LCPS demonstrated its commitment to student safety and success. Phase 3 of the plan looks to build on that momentum by addressing the mental and emotional health components as well.

Not only is LCPS improving safety and quality of life for its students and staff through COVID-safe breathing air, it’s also serving as a model to other districts in North Carolina. By following similar strategies, any district can experience the same cost-effective safe air improvements that LCPS has implemented.

Contact us Today for Your Safe Air Plan!

 

###

About AirBox

AirBox Air Purifiers is America’s top provider of commercial-grade safe air solutions. With a range of commercial air purifier options designed by the leader in cleanroom technology, the company is an industry leader in pathogen mitigation for schools, commercial facilities, and indoor public spaces. AirBox products are manufactured in an EPA registered facility in North Carolina, are FDA compliant and utilize Certified HEPA technology that evolved from filtration technology common to ultra-clean manufacturing and research environments typical to pharmaceutical, semiconductor, and biotechnology industries. For additional information, visit www.airboxairpurifier.com

AirBox Contact: [email protected] 

About BOX Pure Air

Box Pure Air strives to provide the best products to help clean air through the deployment of high-efficiency air purification technologies. The company is an authorized distributor of AirBox Air Purifier products. Learn more at www.boxpureair.com

BOX Pure Air Contact: [email protected] 

843-936-6649

About Lenoir County Public Schools

Lenoir County Public Schools (LCPS) serves more than 8,700 K-12 students, providing academic instruction and support at 17 facilities in Kinston/Lenoir County, North Carolina. We believe that setting high standards for all students creates a greater opportunity for future success. Each day, our teachers and support staff strive to make the educational opportunities in LCPS relevant to the lives of our children by creating an exciting and engaging place to learn and preparing them to be leaders in a technologically savvy and globally competitive world. LCPS offers a range of specialized programs, and we also educate, support, and meet the needs of students with learning and physical disabilities. LCPS is one of the largest employers in Lenoir County with approximately 1,300 teachers, support staff, and administrators.

LCPS Contact: [email protected]

252-527-1109