The Northland School Division says before the 2021-22 academic school year began, air filtration within division schools were upgraded at the requirements set by Alberta Health Services and the province. In September 2021 the upgrades were made to keep staff and students safer coming back to school.
Dr. Nancy Spencer-Poitras, Superintendent of Schools says “We installed MERV 13-rated filters, which are capable of capturing particles between 0.3 micros and 1.0 with 98% efficiency.” Alberta Health Services says the use of filters with a reporting value of 13 or greater are recommended to capture airborne virus particles in a FAQ & Resource Guide for School IAQ.
Spencer-Poitras noted with the improved air filtration; ““Since the beginning of the school year, we have exceeded safety requirements set by Alberta Health Services and the Government of Alberta. We will continue to lead by example in our efforts to have the health and safety of students and staff as our first priority.”
The division also put a number of preventative health measures in place to curb the spread of Covid-19 in their Back to School Plan for 2021-22:
- Students in Grades 4 and up and all staff are under the mandatory masking rule
- Highly recommended masks for students in Kindergarten through Grade 3
- Enhanced cleaning
- Daily screening
- Cohorting
- Physical distancing
- Enhanced protocols for field trips.
-Erika Rolling, Trending 55 Newsroom
