Truman Health and Safety Annual Notification 2019-2020
Truman Public Schools is committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for all employees, students, and public citizens utilizing the school facilities. The District maintains a Board approved Health and Safety Program that lists and documents the procedures and plans for maintaining a safe and healthy environment. The Health and Safety Program also helps the District maintain compliance with the numerous state and federal regulations and laws governing health and safety issues in the District. As a part of that compliance, each year the District notifies the employees and parents of following ongoing programs.
The Truman Public School District has continued to respond to asbestos present in our school buildings through monitoring and maintenance. Asbestos, most often found contained in thermal pipe insulation, is a mineral fiber associated with increased levels of disease when inhaled. Since the implementation of the Asbestos Management Plan in 1989 the District has continued with its ongoing asbestos operations and maintenance program, including a periodic surveillance every six months in each of the District’s buildings. During the periodic surveillance, damage to material containing asbestos is noted and repaired following strict procedures. Asbestos is dangerous only when it is broken loose from building material into fine, dust-like fibers and inhaled. When this condition becomes a possibility, asbestos is removed. This past year the District conducted the periodic surveillance as required by the Asbestos Management Plan. These inspections are done to maintain asbestos-containing materials in a safe condition in all areas of the buildings where asbestos is present. In addition, this summer the District employed a licensed asbestos abatement contractor to remove asbestos floor tile and mastic from Elementary School main hallway, entrance, and speech corridor. The detailed Asbestos Maintenance Plan and updated information for each building, and for the entire district, is open to public review. You can find the Asbestos Management Plan located in the District Office of Truman Public Schools. If you have any further questions about asbestos or other safety related issues, please contact the District’s Safety Coordinator, Timothy Harbo, at (507) 351-5495 or the District Office .
Truman Public Schools, as part of the District’s Health and Safety Program, has an Integrated Pest Management Program. This program establishes procedures on the use of pesticides in and around the District’s Buildings. Truman Public Schools utilize a licensed, professional pest control service firm for the prevention and control of rodents, insects, weeds, and other pests in and around the district’s building. Their program consists of :
Pests can sting, bite, cause contamination, damage property, and spread disease, therefore we must prevent and control them. The long-term health effects on children from the application of such pest control materials, or the class of materials to which they belong, may not be fully understood. All pest control materials are chosen and applied according to label directions per Federal law. In addition, school district personnel may apply pest control materials inside or on school grounds as needed. Pest control materials are registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and are selected and applied according to label directions. An estimated schedule of interior pest control inspections and possible treatments are available for review or copying at each school office. A similar estimated schedule is available for the application of herbicides and other materials to school grounds. Parents of students may request to receive, at their expense, prior notification of any application of a pest control material, should such an application be deemed necessary on a day different from the days specified in the schedule.
The District maintains a comprehensive program for Air Quality in the school buildings. The purpose of this program is to maintain optimum air quality in the District buildings. Throughout the year air quality is monitored and air handling systems are maintained on an established schedule to insure good air quality. The District will continue to monitor, maintain, and address air quality issues. If you have any questions or concerns regarding air quality and the Air Quality Management Program please contact Ben Hoppe, Buildings and Grounds, or the District Office.
The District has developed detailed plans for emergency procedures such as fires, tornados, or other crisis issues. Some of those plans have building specific procedures which will be provided by the building administration at the start of the school year. Plans can be found in each office.
The Health and Safety Program provides detailed information on chemicals and conditions determined to pose potential hazards to employees who work with these chemicals. Affected employees receive annual training and the District maintains material safety data sheets on these chemicals and conditions. For more information on this program, contact the District Office.
Truman Public Schools, as part of the District’s Health and Safety Program, has collected water samples from all fixtures used for drinking and/or cooking. Samples are taken and analyzed for lead content by a MDH certified laboratory every 5 years. Samples were last collected Ben Hoppe and Tim Harbo and analyzed by Minnesota Valley Testing Laboratories(MVTL). The Minnesota Department of Health has set a threshold of 20 ug/L as a requirement to notify parents of levels from any particular water source. First draw samples were taken throughout all drinking sources of water in the building, and levels above 20 ug/L were found in 6 taps in the Elementary(109E, 108E, 107E, Daycare fountain, 105 E east, 105 E west) and 4 taps in the Home Ec room of the High School. All taps were immediately taken out of use and a plan was put in place to reduce lead levels or take taps out of service. All faucets with high numbers in the elementary area were replaced with new faucets and retested. Retest levels in all elementary taps came back below 20 ug/L, for first draw results. Truman Public schools has set a more stringent lead standard in our buildings however, so only taps that came back below 5 ug/L were allowed to be reestablished as a drinking source. All faucets with high numbers in the Home Ec room of the High School were retested with first draw and flushing of one minute. Four of the 5 came back above 20ug/L on the first draw, and all came back below 20ug/L on the flushed sample. The school district may use the faucets for drinking water if a daily flushing protocol is put into place. At this time the district was decided to take these faucets out of use for drinking or food preparation. Results are available for review at the District office. Truman Public Schools is making every effort to eliminate or reduce building occupant's exposure to lead through the drinking water. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this issue, you may contact Tim Harbo, 507-351-5495.
The District has an employee/administration safety committee that meets regularly during the school year to address safety concerns and issues. Please feel free to contact Timothy Harbo at the District office if you have concerns or issues relating to health and safety in the District.
Timothy Harbo Environmental Coordinator Measles outbreak in Minnesota
Health and safety of students and staff at Truman Public Schools is a priority. While no environment can be free from potential infection or hazards, our staff places high importance on maintaining a healthy place for our students, staff and visitors. One of the best ways to keep children healthy is encouraging children who are ill to stay home. It is suggested that a child remain out of school for 24 hours following an episode of vomiting/diarrhea or having a temperature of over 100 degrees (or whatever is over one degree of normal for the child.) We actively encourage good hand hygiene and learning to cover a cough or sneeze in an appropriate way. Our custodial staff is well versed in keeping our building as clean as possible with removal of any potentially hazardous materials or conditions. Our school lunch program follows federal guidelines for nutritious meals at school. Soda and candy are not available for student purchase, and we ask that snacks brought from home meet nutritional guidelines as “healthy”. Treats for birthday parties or special events must have been prepared and packaged in licensed environment. Each fall students in K-6 and grades 8 and 10 are included in vision and hearing screening provided by a team of trained technicians. This includes screening for visual acuity, muscle balance, color vision (in grade one) and pure tone audiometric screening for hearing. In grades four and five scoliosis screening is done for both boys and girls. Children having difficulty with initial screening are rescreened several weeks later and referrals made to parents if needed. State immunization requirements are in place. This helps provide lower risk for communicable disease spread among our students. Flu vaccine clinics will be offered in the fall of 2015 free of charge for all students. In the event of an outbreak such as measles, parents of children who have a conscientious objection to the vaccine will be reminded of the potential risk. 2018 Lead Testing
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