MURRAY — An early childhood education program in western Kentucky finished installing new technology to help combat COVID-19.
Leaders of Murray Head Start say the devices are a way to create clean and safe spaces for kids and staff by reducing harmful organisms in the air.
Murray Head Start has installed air disinfection devices for about 15 classrooms and 10 office spaces. Management says installing the devices is important for the kids' health and safety.
“It’s a long-term investment, but it’s also something that we have tried to find affordable solutions for," Murray Head Start Director Cindy Graves says.
So far, the price tag for the investments is less than $35,000. Money for the devices is coming from federal dollars like the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan Act.
Leaders say it's practical. About 30 to 40 kids have had to quarantine because of COVID-19 since the beginning of the school year in August.
“It’s a prevention approach, and it’s kind of what we’re going with," Murray Head Start Health Services Coordinator Whitney Pile says. "We treat things as they happen. We do things in the classroom day in and day out as part of the health and safety piece, but the air purifier is a prevention piece for us.”
Device distributors say there has been more demand for their products because of the impacts of COVID-19.
“The importance of indoor air quality is becoming very relevant," MEDformance vice president of sales Brad Cleaver says. "Everyone’s looking to try to find solutions to help keep our kids and staff in school, and this is just another layered approach to help achieve that goal.”
Some kids at Murray Head Start don't wear masks, because the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only recommends face coverings for people age 2 and up.
Management says the investment is all the more important to help protect children younger than 2, who are not recommended to wear masks.
Leaders from the program also say that even after the pandemic is over, they'll keep the disinfection devices around.
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