MOUNT VERNON — School employees work hard to provide a clean and safe environment for children and the county health departments help with that task. Now new legislation, dubbed Jared’s Law, has resulted in even closer collaboration between local school districts and the respective county health departments since it went into effect in September.
The law, HB 203, expands existing environmental health regulations related to schools, and requires more frequent checks and inspections of things such as playground equipment, roofs and bleachers.
The increased teamwork and collaboration is not a bad thing, according to area superintendents and custodians. Patrick Forshey, custodial supervisor for East Knox Local Schools, said he and his staff are “very happy to continue to work with the health department to make sure we comply in all areas.”
Tim Hilborn, superintendent of Highland Local Schools, said Jennifer Trainer from the Morrow County Health Department has met with that county’s school officials regarding the professional development opportunities being offered to help prepare the staff for the additional inspections. Also, statewide meetings have been scheduled to help districts become more familiar with the new regulations.
The Richland County Health department, according to Clear Fork superintendent Dan Freund, has been very helpful in working with district employees to comply with the new law. Mount Vernon superintendent Steve Short said the local health and fire departments have been involved in school safety inspections, and the cooperative venture allows the district to see potential safety hazards “through someone else’s eyes.” As Freund said, it has helped districts focus on some areas that needed additional attention.
While Jared’s Law has its roots in a tragic death caused by a bank of folded, unsecured cafeteria tables, many more environmental health and safety issues are included in the bill.
For instance, although school roofs are inspected annually, HB 203 mandates that a qualified individual also inspect each school roof following each incident of severe weather. That task generally falls to the head custodian of the district, but, Fredericktown superintendent Dan Humphrey said, it is his understanding that the district will have to hire an outside firm to do an inspection each year. Dan Harper, Danville’s superintendent, said his maintenance department also works with different companies that inspect and make recommendations.
Additional rules and regulations regarding playgrounds and playground surfaces are part of HB 203 as well, and go so far as to specify the maximum allowable height of playground equipment in relation to the minimum amount of surfacing material present. Short said Mount Vernon custodians are double checking all of the bolts and fasteners on equipment, and checking the heights of the equipment and the depths of the mulch. At Centerburg, the district took steps over the summer to reconfigure its elementary playground to comply with the law. Superintendent Dorothy Holden said those upgrades cost more than $30,000.
The legislation also mandates the minimum size of entryway mats, bans certain types of magic markers, limits who can move heavy equipment, details how to store cleaning and other substances, and even dictates lighting levels in classrooms, offices, athletic areas and cafeterias.
Short said the district will probably have to hire someone to come in and check the light levels, and may have to contract with other certified and licensed inspectors for other areas.
Most districts, like Highland and the Knox County Career Center, have implemented some sort of a monthly self-inspection checklist to keep on top of things, and now take extra care on a daily basis to head off potential problems. As an example, Short said, whenever a custodian pulls out the bleachers for a game, he or she will also be making sure all the nuts and bolts are tightened and looking for things that need to be corrected. Some districts, he speculated, may have to hire an extra custodian because all the additional routine checks are very time consuming.
The law has also affected school buildings under construction. Ray Richardson, superintendent of the Knox County Career Center, said the Ohio School Facilities Commission incorporates any changes, such as lighting requirements, into the specifications, and the contractors make the necessary alterations in the design and structure under way.
All the costs associated with HB 203 are still to be determined, but the superintendents think making things safer for children is the ultimate payoff.
“We are continuing to assess the financial impact,” Freund said. “If the net effect is a safer environment for children, the dollars spent are worth the investment.”
