NEA Vice
President Lily Eskelsen worked with CNN on a special news piece that reveals
just how hazardous crumbling schools are to student learning and health.
CNN will shine the national spotlight on indoor air
quality (IAQ) in schools across America with a segment airing on Saturday,
January 14 (8 p.m. and 11 p.m.) and Sunday, January 15 (2 a.m., 8 p.m. and 11
p.m.)
The
segment highlights CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta as he
visits schools in Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut and examines the
impact of poor IAQ on students and school employees. During his travels,
Dr. Gupta spoke to NEA members and leaders, including NEA Vice President Lily
Eskelsen (read Lily’s
blog), who emphasized the dire need to fix our schools, making clear the impact that
IAQ has on student health, safety, and performance.
An
estimated 14 million American children attend public schools that are in urgent
need of extensive repair or replacement and have unhealthy environmental
conditions, including poor air quality, unsafe drinking water and inadequate
safety systems. NEA and its members are urging Congress to pass President Obama’s Fix
America’s Schools Today Act, which would provide $25
billion for modernizing and repairing public schools, with half of the funds
funneled to schools that need it most.
To get a sneak peek at a behind the scenes video of the
segment, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBxGwLCkN4s.
During the week following the segment, we’ll continue to discuss the modernization of schools, IAQ, and their effect on performance.
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