Virginia Plans $500M Investment To Improve Air Quality In Schools

VIRGINIA — Virginia plans to invest $500 million to improve ventilation and air quality in public schools as part of the state’s effort to reduce the risk of airborne illnesses, including COVID-19.

The state will use $250 million in federal American Rescue Plan funding for ventilation upgrades, an amount that will be matched by local American Rescue Plan and other relief funding.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced the $500 million in spending at Hopewell High School in the city of Hopewell. “This investment will help families, educators, and students feel more confident about the quality of the air they breathe as we return to in-person learning five days a week this fall,” the governor said in a statement.

The announcement marked the start of the state’s “Investment Week,” during which Northam and legislative leaders will highlight proposals for allocating the $4.3 billion in American Rescue Plan funding available to the state in advance of the Aug. 2 special session of the Virginia General Assembly.

In a recent report to the Commission on School Construction and Modernization, the Virginia Department of Education analyzed 117 capital improvement plans from school divisions detailing the projects they plan to complete in the next decade.

Ranking second behind plans for new buildings and renovations, school divisions most frequently planned for HVAC repair and replacement projects, with a total of 463 HVAC projects amounting to $623 million.

Funding will be allocated to school divisions based on their average daily membership, with a minimum allocation of $200,000 per school division. The funds will be granted as reimbursements to divisions completing HVAC projects.

“In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools have recognized the need to improve their air quality and HVAC systems,” Del. Roslyn Tyler, chair of the House Education Committee, said in a statement.

Every school in Virginia is required to make in-person instruction available to all students in the 2021-22 school year, under Senate Bill 1303, which was passed during Virginia’s 2021 special session.

“This investment is another prime example of how we will be utilizing American Rescue Plan funding to move Virginia forward and build on the investments of last year’s CARES Act funding,” state Sen. Janet Howell, chair of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, said in a statement.

In 2020, Northam directed $492 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act funding to public schools initiatives. This year, Virginia received approximately $939 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief II funds under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021.

Ninety percent of the funding was distributed to school divisions in January, with the other 10 percent set aside for targeted state-level initiatives to address the impact of the pandemic on students and schools.