Texas Elementary School Indoor Air Study (tesias): Overview and Major Findings

A study of 120 randomly selected classrooms in 30 schools in central and south Texas, USA was conducted to begin assembling baseline information on the condition of indoor air in Texas elementary schools. Part I of the study consisted of questionnaires sent to all teachers and staff in the schools to obtain information about the use of their rooms, room contents and their perceptions of its indoor air quality. Part II consisted of walkthroughs in each school and the 120 classrooms to obtain information on the building design, HVAC system and condition of the space/building. It also included making measurements of temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide in the selected classrooms. Additionally, air samples were analyzed for fungal and bacterial genera, counts of airborne particles, and volatile organic compound levels in 18 classrooms. INDEX TERMS Elementary school, Indoor air study, Microbial contaminants INTRODUCTION The U.S. General Accounting Office (1995) has estimated that at least one in five U.S. schools has significant indoor air quality problems. The purpose of the Texas Elementary School Indoor Air Study (TESIAS) was to begin to develop benchmark information related to the condition of indoor air in Texas elementary (K–6) schools. The project consisted of three main tasks. Phase 1 consisted of a survey of health symptoms and perceptions of indoor air quality of occupants at 30 schools in central and south Texas. Phase 2 consisted of two tasks. Task 1 was a walkthrough of the 30 elementary schools and measurement of comfort parameters in 120 randomly selected classrooms in these schools. Task 2 consisted of a comprehensive investigation of indoor air parameters in a subset of 18 classrooms from these