Parents: Read this to check your kid's disease safety at school.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

This article is written by health professionals at Harvard with excellent credentials. This is good reference info for taking to your local schools to check how well they're doing on coronavirus, flu and measles safety:

To Prepare for Coronavirus, Simple Measures Are Often Most Effective
Public health experts and educators emphasize clear benefits of handwashing habits and well-stocked restrooms in schools
By: Emily Boudreau
Posted: March 8, 2020

Read it here: https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/20/03/prepare-coronavirus-simple-measures-are-often-most-effective

(snip)

“Frequent handwashing with soap and hot water for 20 seconds is a proven way to reduce disease transmission,” said Marc Lipsitch, Professor of Epidemiology and Director of the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “It is one of the simplest and most effective things we can do to prevent ourselves and our loved ones from getting infected.”

And yet well-stocked school restrooms and healthy handwashing habits are not always the norm. A recent investigation by the Boston Globe revealed that public health inspectors had found problems in 89 of 111 Boston Public Schools bathrooms. In Detroit, students filed a lawsuit against the Michigan Department of Education noting nonworking sinks and lack of basic supplies such as toilet paper. The issues extend beyond infrastructure. “New York City teachers have described elementary schools that refuse to allow students to use bathroom sinks because washing hands ‘wastes time’ and ‘causes incidents (such as water fights),’” says Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor Meira Levinson. “This is a good time to turn these approaches around. By investing in bathroom maintenance and improvements and by changing the culture around handwashing, schools have an opportunity to show students both that their health and wellbeing are critically important and that they can be part of a public health solution that will help others.”
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Schools should build disease-prevention practices into daily schedules.
Add 5 minutes to lunch and recess periods to ensure students have time to wash their hands.
Build in the practice of handwashing throughout the day, during transition times.
Provide hand sanitizer at school entrances.
Set up hand-sanitizer stations in each classroom, so that each time children return to the classroom, they get a squirt. Students should be taught to spread the sanitizer evenly and entirely over both hands and to allow their hands to air-dry. (Note that public health guidance says that washing hands with soap and water is most effective, but hand sanitizers with at least 60 percent alcohol are a sound alternative when soap and water are unavailable.)
Post handwashing reminders around the school that reinforce proper handwashing techniques.
Make it a classroom habit to regularly clean or wipe surfaces that everyone touches often. Appoint students to a “clean squad,”and make it as special as being appointed line leader or any other classroom perk.

Schools should ensure that all restrooms are always well stocked with soap and paper towels. Sinks should all have hot and cold running water. Washrooms should be accessible — all students should be able to reach the sink. Clean public washrooms frequently.

Schools can mobilize PTO and parent volunteers to equip schools and classrooms with cleaning supplies, as needed.
Smooth out processes to accept parent donations of soap, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies.
Take advantage of classroom representatives, if they exist at your school. These classroom-based parent volunteers can coordinate preparedness at a hyper-local level. These preparations can be fun and customized to each classroom.

.........and much more good info including links to other pro articles and the CDC, WHO, etc.

With this knowledge, parents and teachers can approach school administers on how to correct deficiences. Let's all remember schools usually have deficiencies due to severe budget cuts or troubled kids, so we need to be compassionate with our approach.

KY...........

[BigmanPigman]

1. Teachers at the elem. school I taught at had their students bring

a bottle of hand sanitizer to keep at their desks. The dry, powder soap and lack of hot water and paper towels (often due to boys playing around in their bathroom) were a constant issue.

*One day I saw the most hyper kid cleaning his entire desk and chair with the sanitizer and my box of tissue. They all would put it on their legs, faces, etc (first grade).

[dewsgirl]

2. I remember that stuff, I forgot it existed.

[BigmanPigman]

3. The boys' bathroom would have the soap and wet paper towels all over

the walls and even ceiling. The bathrooms are often locked since you can't trust the kids not to screw them up and there is no $$$ for supplies or custodians any more. I would allow them to go in pairs or in a group with me as the monitor (oh joy).

[KY_EnviroGuy]

4. Kick to get up above stock market and Trump insanity.

KY...........

[Hermit-The-Prog]

5. Thanks for this. I have two adult family members in a school system with both their kids.