Reducing Airborne Transmission in Schools for SARS-2 / COVID-19
We are a group of scientists, physicians, advocates, and organizers who are working to keep schools and communities safe. On Wednesday, August 18, we discussed concerns on school reopenings and strategies that can work to reduce airbone transmission in the U.S. These strategies have been successfully used during the Delta and Omicron waves, and will continue to work for future variants.This page includes the video for our event, executive summary, and resources which will be updated regularly to help communities organize. These strategies can be applied anywhere in the world.
Resources and slides from presenters
Short videos from Presenters
Success Stories
Media Mentions
Executive Summary
Speakers
Dr. Kimberly prather
Dr. Kimberly Prather is a Distinguished Professor and Director of the National Science Foundation Center for Aerosol Impacts on Chemistry of the Environment at UC San Diego. She is leading efforts to highlight that aerosol spread is the main form of transmission of SARS-CoV-2.
joaquín beltrán
Joaquín Beltrán is the creator of Speak Up America and authored the framework for a Green Zone Act to end community transmission of the pandemic. He is a graduate of the Coro Foundation and past organizer for two successful presidential campaigns.
dr. elizabeth jacobs
Dr. Elizabeth Jacobs is an epidemiologist from Tucson, Arizona who helped start Right2SafeSchoolsAZ along with Dr. Cadey Harrel, Dr. Christina Bergin, Ms. Jessica Wani, Esq., and Mr. Trevor Nelson.
Dr. Jorge A. Caballero
Dr. Jorge A Caballero is a board-certified anesthesiologist, data engineer and health equity advocate. His work has informed congressional action and his analyses of Covid-19 disparities has received national recognition.
Dr. Linsey Marr
Dr. Linsey Marr is an engineering professor at Virginia Tech with expertise in airborne transmission of viruses, air quality, nanotechnology.
Dr. Richard Corsi
Dr. Richard Corsi is a leading expert in the field of indoor air quality, and Dean of Maseeh College of Engineering & Computer Science, Portland State University and future Dean of Engineering at UC Davis.
Dr. Theresa Chapple
Dr. Theresa Chapple is a maternal and child health epidemiologist, and a local public health director. She has dedicated the last 19 months to combating misinformation about COVID-19, building her science communication skills to teach the public about prevention approaches, and advocating for data-driven public policy to address the pandemic.
Dr. Alex Huffman
Dr. Alex Huffman is an Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Denver and has been working to educate on the airborne spread of COVID & prevention.
Dr. Julia Raifman
Dr. Julia Raifman, ScD, SM created the COVID-19 U.S. State Policy Database (CUSP) and is focused on evaluating how policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis are shaping COVID-19, mental health, and economic precarity during the pandemic.
David Elfstrom
David Elfstrom, P.Eng, is an Ontario, Canada based Professional Engineer practicing in the field of energy efficiency of buildings, including the design and evaluation of HVAC systems that affect energy, emissions, and COVID-19 transmission.
Dr. Carolyn Cannuscio
Dr. Cannuscio, ScD is a social epidemiologist with substantial experience studying aging, chronic disease, and health disparities. She works on COVID-19 prevention.
Jim Rosenthal
Jim Rosenthal is the Chairman and CEO of Air Relief Technologies, Inc. He has over 19 years in the air filtration and environmental control industries and is a Certified Air Filter Specialist by National Air Filtration Association (NAFA). Past President of NAFA and Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (Texas).
Dr. Denise dewald
Dr. Denise Dewald, MD is an internist and pediatrician in Cleveland, Ohio.
Dr. Robert “Chip” Schooley
Robert "Chip" T. Schooley is an American infectious disease physician, who is the Vice-Chair of Academic Affairs, Senior Director of International Initiatives, and Co-Director at the Center for Innovative Phage Applications and Therapeutics, at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine.
Whitney Antrim
Whitney Antrim is a Trustee at Coronado Unified School District (Tk-12) and attorney specializing in Education Law at The Erickson Firm.
Dr. Andrew Goldstein
Dr. Andrew Goldstein is a an assistant professor of medicine at NYU and practicing primary care at Bellevue. During the pandemic he has organized for paid shutdowns, venue closures and capacity limits, contact tracing, community health systems, and to end vaccine apartheid.
Dr. Lisa-Delano Wood
Dr. Delano-Wood is currently an Associate Professor of Psychiatry within the School of Medicine at UCSD, Co-Founder of San Diegans for Safe Schools, Co-Founder of Californians for Safe Schools, and Staff Neuropsychologist at the Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System
dr. Yaneer Bar-Yam
Dr. Yaneer Bar-Yam is a complexity physicist and pandemic expert. He is president of NECSI and founder of the World Health Network.
Dr. Julie swann
Dr. Julie Swann is the department head and A. Doug Allison Distinguished Professor of the Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. She is leading a team selected by the CDC and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists to develop forecasts and decision models to support state decision making during the Covid-19 pandemic in the US.
Dr. howard taras
Dr. Howard Taras is a Board-Certified Pediatrician who specializes in the fields of School Health, community engagement in clinical research, oral health promotion to child professionals, and access to health care for underserved populations.
Mary Jirmanus
Mary Jirmanus Saba is cofounder Mass Coalition for Health Equity. She is a geographer who uses film and other media to explore histories of the labor movement in the Arab world and its connections to Latin America, feminist internationalism, and new possibilities for transformative social change.
Dr. Lucky Tran
Dr. Lucky Tran is a scientist, science communicator, and organizer. He holds a PhD in molecular biology from the University of Cambridge, and completed his postdoctoral training at Weill Cornell Medical College. Lucky is a refugee from Vietnam who grew up in Australia and now lives in New York. He serves as the Managing Director of March for Science.
Dr. Maria Mayorga
Maria Mayorga is a professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering at North Carolina State University. She is working on COVID-19 Simulation Integrated Model (COVSIM) to inform local decision-making.
Dr. Dustin Poppendieck
Dr. Dustin Poppendieck is an Environmental Engineer in the Indoor Air Quality and Ventilation Group of the Energy and Environment Division of the Engineering Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Ian Ricksecker
Ian Ricksecker is a software engineer with a specialty in security and risk management, and the father of a third grade student in San Diego Unified School District.
AGENDA
Delta Concerns of U.S. School Reopenings and Reducing Airborne Transmission: How can the US safely reopen schools given the airborne spread of the more transmissible Delta variant?
Wednesday Aug 18 (12:00 PM PT / 3:00 PM ET – 2:00 PM PT / 5:00 PM ET)
12:00-12:05 Welcome and overall goals for meeting (Dr. Kim Prather, PhD, Dr. Denise
Dewald, MD)
12:05-12:50 Session 1: How is COVID-19 transmitted and how can we protect kids, teachers, staff, families?
Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (Dr. Prather)-10
How do masks work? Which masks are needed for Delta? (Dr. Linsey Marr, PhD)-5
Are there effective measures that we can use in schools to reduce risk by Fall? (Dr. Richard Corsi, PhD)-5
How to insure good ventilation and filtration (David Elfstrom, Dr. Dustin Poppendieck, PhD, Jim Rosenthal)-10
Are vaccines safe? Should everyone wear masks in Fall including vaccinated? (Dr. Chip Schooley, MD)-5
Steps involved in reopening San Diego Unified (Dr. Kim Prather, Dr. Howard Taras, MD, Ian Ricksecker (Parent, SD Unified)-10
12:50-1:00 Q&A session
1:00-1:20 Session 2: Update on Delta and added challenges in reopening schools
Modeling spread of COVID-19: Delta transmission in schools (Dr. Julie Swann, PhD/Dr. Maria Mayorga, PhD )-5
Data driven impacts of COVID-19: Delta risks to kids (Dr. Jorge Caballero, MD)-5
State policies to prevent COVID-19 among children (Dr. Julia Raifman ScD)-5
How is Delta amplifying inequities? - (Dr. Theresa Chapple, PhD MPH)-5
1:20-1:50 Session 3: Panel Discussion: Advocacy, health safety, controls in schools
Joaquin Beltran – Creator of Speak Up America (Moderator)
Whitney Antrim, Trustee, Coronado Unified School District (Tk-12), and attorney specializing in Education Law at The Erickson Firm
Dr. Carolyn Cannuscio, ScD (UPenn) - Epidemiologist who studies school outbreaks and runs contact tracing efforts
Dr. Lisa Delano-Wood, PhD – Clinical neuropsychologist at UC San Diego who co-founded "Californians for Safe Schools"
Dr. Andrew Goldstein, MD – Grassroots political organizer and primary care doctor
Dr. Alex Huffman, PhD (U of Denver) - Aerosol scientist and concerned parent
Dr. Elizabeth Jacobs, PhD (Arizona) - Epidemiologist from Tucson, Arizona who helped start Right2SafeSchoolsAZ
Mary Jirmanus Saba -Political economist and organizer (http://masscoalitionforhealthequity.org)
Lucky Tran, PhD- Scientist, science communicator, activist, organizer
1:50-2:00 Next steps: Action Items and Concluding Remarks (Dr. Yaneer Mar-Bam and Dr. Kim Prather)
Urgent: Statements and letters
What questions can people ask their schools about ventilation and filtration (and general safety to reduce airborne transmission)?
Letter of concern to send to school admin and board
Petitions
Poll on ideas for breakout topics (1) bringing together advocacy groups, 2) vaccine hesitancy, 3) mask resources, 4), ventilation and filtration, 5) creating a list of Q’s for schools, boards, 6) petitions, 7) legal options, 8) uniting parent activists.
Twitter hash tag for event: #DeltaSchoolsAirborne
Twitter handles of speakers
@kprather88 @linseymarr @corsiAQ @chipatucsd @huffmanlabDU @joaquinlife @juliaraifman @theangryepi @theresachapple @datadrivenMD @ldelanowood @andrewmaketweet @maryjirmanus @AntrimWhitney @CarolynCannu @jimrosenthal4 @davidelfstrom @denise_dewald @yaneerbaryam @ianricksecker @sdschools @luckytran @jlswann @Poppendieck