Baltimore County Public Schools, Baltimore, MD

Though Baltimore County Public Schools’ (BCPS) existing maintenance program was strong and the district did not face any serious IAQ problems, with the second oldest facilities inventory in Maryland, the district needed a concrete plan to manage its facilities effectively. BCPS modified its walkthrough inspection report to include a summary that is submitted to the Department of Physical Facilities twice a year. Information in the summaries keeps the Department of Physical Facilities informed regarding the realities and perceptions at each campus. If there is the hint of a concern, action will be taken, often before the school community realizes the need for action. This early intervention is key to maintaining the confidence level critical to managing a large system.

“Evaluating our program and sharing the results has allowed us to build a lot of confidence from our community — both our internal community and external community — that we have the ability one, to assess our air quality issues and two, to solve them.” David Glassman, BCPS Industrial Hygienist

Results:

• Reduced average expenditures on mold remediation activities from $513,000 to $150,000 within one year of program implementation.
• Observed a significant reduction in number and severity of IAQ-related work orders and complaints.
• Reduced the number of remediation projects that delayed school openings from between 30-40 to just a single incident since program implementation.