Philadelphia Medicine Summer 2020 - 18
p h i l a m e d s o c .org
POINT OF VIEW
IN 1969, WE PUT A MAN ON THE MOON.
WHY CAN'T WE SOLVE THE ENVIRONMENTAL
HEALTH HAZARDS PLAGUING PHILADELPHIA'S
PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN 2020?
By: David Masur, Executive Director of the nonprofit PennEnvironment and
Jerry Roseman, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers' Director of Environmental Health and Safety
E
very day, parents from neighborhoods all across Philadelphia
wake up and go through their daily morning routine to get
their kids off to school. We make sure that they've packed
their lunches, finished their homework, and then we do our darndest
to get them out the door and off to school on time.
And while parents may not think about it every day, this daily
routine is done with the implicit belief that we're sending our kids
to places that are safe for their health and wellbeing. Our schools
are the places where our kids spend most of their waking hours and
where they go to learn, achieve, and build lifelong friendships to
grow up to be productive citizens in society.
Unfortunately over the past few years, it feels like you can't pick
up the newspaper or turn on the television news without seeing
another jarring example of Philadelphia's school buildings plagued
with environmental health threats, from asbestos to exposure to
lead paint and lead in drinking water, to common asthma triggers
like mold.
Moreover, we know that the negative effects of these threats reach
beyond the adverse health impacts on students and staff. Numerous
studies have shown that these health hazards in our school buildings
also compromise student learning and achievement, increase absenteeism, and cause skyrocketing costs to already cash-strapped schools.
As city residents, we also had to face the harsh reality of how
these environmental risks threaten teachers and other school workers
last fall after a teacher of nearly 30 years in the Philadelphia public
schools was diagnosed with mesothelioma.
Most recently, it's been the threat of asbestos contamination
in schools across the city that's raising the ire of parents, teachers,
and others.
18 Philadelphia Medicine : Summer 2020
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Philadelphia Medicine Summer 2020
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