NEWS RELEASE: Larchmont Charter School & Alen Air Demonstrate Best Practices to Protect Against COVID-19 Spread for Campus Reopening
LOS ANGELES, California, Larchmont Charter School, serving 1,563 students and over 1,110 families in the Los Angeles community, reopened its campuses on April, 20. To demonstrate best practices in the battle against COVID-19, Alen has installed 80 True HEPA air purifiers throughout Larchmont School's Lafayette Park campus near downtown LA.
The air purifiers directly address airborne virus transmission by capturing over 99 percent of virus and allergen particulates from the air, including COVID-19, acting as a mask for an entire classroom. Purifiers were installed in classrooms, the cafeteria, the teachers’ lounge, and even restrooms.
"Adding air purifiers to our school is a game-changer," said Jennifer Bledsoe, Director of Community Engagement at Larchmont School. "It ensures the safety of our students and staff coming back to campus. It also reassures our community that we're going beyond expected protocol to make our classrooms safer."
Alen chose the Lafayette Park campus because its students live and learn in one of the most densely populated areas of LA. Many of its students breathe unhealthy air, including visible and invisible particulate matter from pollution and wildfires that damages lungs and creates allergic reactions.
- Over 45% of Larchmont students come from low-income families
- College acceptance rate is over 90%
"Our mission is to provide safe air to students, teachers, and workers re-entering closed spaces," said Alen CEO Andy Graham. "If your children and teachers are there, we'll be there to protect them."
A classroom with and without an air purifier (Credit: NY Times)
How Alen is Caring for Classrooms Properly
Portable air cleaners are recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and public health experts as an always-on layer of protection.
COVID-19 transmission is like second-hand smoke—prolonged concentrated exposure is the danger. Air purifiers with the proper capacity for a classroom help reduce virus particle counts, so an infected student is not adding enough particles to infect another student or teacher.
Alen carefully reviews each room's dimensions. Then, we select purifiers that achieve the ACH (air changes per hour) filtration standards set by Harvard's School of Public Health.
“It is so important to provide our students, teachers, staff, and families with an environment where they feel safe and ready to take on the day,” said Amy Held, Larchmont Charter executive director. “We wanted to go beyond the CDC guidelines, and now we can say our classrooms have the cleanest air in Los Angeles.”
Alen third party virus testing results for COVID-19 capture
Alen Purifiers & Filters are COVID-19 Tested
- Independent lab tests show rapid & complete virus capture
- Captured over 99% of virus particles from a 1,050 CuFt chamber w/in 20 minutes
- Tested at LMS Technologies in Bloomington, MN using a live FDA-approved COVID-19 proxy virus.
Why Air Purifiers for Schools are Essential: COVID-19 and Beyond
The need for air purification in classrooms, businesses, and homes is taking center stage as states roll out back to school operations and communicate safety precautions based on the science coming from public health officials.
- Good ventilation is the most effective and practical way to rid a space of contaminants, such as COVID. The Harvard Healthy Buildings program recommends four to six air exchanges per hour in classrooms through any combination of ventilation and filtration.
- More than four out of 10 Americans, or about 135 million people, live where the air is polluted, according to a report by the American Lung Association. People of color were more than 61% more likely to live in a county with unhealthy air.
- In a 2019 study, researchers found that about 85% of 94 recently installed HVAC systems in California K-12 classrooms did not provide adequate ventilation. The CDC has already reported that schools in rural areas have better air quality than those in urban areas, putting students such as those attending Larchmont Charter Schools at risk for respiratory issues and dropout.
About the Air Purifiers at Larchmont School
Alen BreatheSmart FLEX & Alen BreatheSmart 75i
Commercial Quality for Schools and Homes
- Powerful air-cleaning capacity to meet 4-6 ACH public health recommendations
- Large medical-grade True HEPA H13 filters
- Whisper-quiet: Teachers can teach and students can listen
- Adds nothing to the air: No ozone is emitted, and no UV (ultraviolet) light is used
- Designed to run 24/7 365 with ENERGY STAR-Certified efficiency
Alen BreatheSmart FLEX True HEPA Air Purifier From $349
Alen BreatheSmart 75i True HEPA Air Purifier From $749
Want to Learn More?
Visit our Alen for Schools page
Read our in-depth School Blog about how True HEPA purifiers help reduce COVID-19 risk in classrooms
Contact our Education Safety Team EduSafety@alen.com or call 855.200.5483
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