Return to Campus Letter #3 Prioritizing Ventilation in Our Indoor Campus Spaces
Return to Campus Letter #3
April 16, 2021
Dear Brooklyn College Community,
This Return to Campus Letter is the third in a series designed to help you understand our preparations for the fall and underscore the importance of health and safety in our work.
In my last letter, I discussed the identification and preparation of priority academic spaces for the fall semester. In this letter, I’d like to discuss the importance of ventilation in enclosed spaces on campus. Ventilation refers to the introduction of fresh air into a room or building.
COVID-19 is most often spread through close contact between people. It can also be transmitted through respiratory droplets in the air exhaled by someone and inhaled by someone else. The face masks we all now wear are designed to capture our airborne droplets as we exhale and prevent us from inhaling the airborne droplets of others. Masks, therefore, work to protect both ourselves and others.
Because COVID may be transmitted through respiratory droplets in the air, the quality of air circulation in indoor spaces is especially important. The circulation of fresh air in a space helps remove respiratory droplets and thereby decreases the risk of COVID transmission indoors.
Although there are no universal standards on indoor ventilation to address COVID, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed a set of recommendations on air quality and best practices to enhance ventilation. We aim to meet those recommendations. We are testing the air quality and ventilation in classrooms and other enclosed spaces throughout the campus. As part of our preparation for the fall semester, we are evaluating how much outdoor air travels into an area and how frequently air turns over in it.
We have identified three types of spaces in buildings on our campus. First, our newer buildings have central Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) units, and they enjoy good air quality that meets the CDC recommendations. Second, some of our older buildings have smaller, individual ventilation units, which we are upgrading with newer and stronger air filters to meet the CDC recommendations. Third, other older buildings on campus rely on natural ventilation and open windows for the introduction of fresh air. In those, we are taking steps to enhance air quality to meet the CDC recommendations through mechanical repairs, changes in operations, or the installation of exhaust fans, air filtration devices, or disinfection units. Where we cannot improve air quality in areas of those buildings, we will reduce or prohibit occupancy.
I want to assure you: We will continue to work to protect your health and safety in preparation for a gradual return to campus. Although we don’t know how conditions may change on the ground over the next few months, it is highly likely that we will continue to mandate that everyone on campus wear masks over both their nose and mouth and maintain appropriate physical distancing from others at all times.
Two quick reminders:
- “Addressing Concerns about the COVID Vaccine” Forum on Tuesday, April 20, from 12:30–2 p.m. Register in advance.
- Staff and Faculty “Return to Campus Community Consultation” on Thursday, April 22, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Register in advance. In preparation for that discussion, please send us your questions and suggestions.
I will issue a Return to Campus Letter #4 late next week. Please remember: Getting vaccinated against COVID helps protect you and your loved ones from infection, hospitalization, and death. All New Yorkers age 16 and older are now eligible–and vaccination is free.
Yours sincerely,
Michelle J. Anderson
President, Brooklyn College
