Clean air is essential for health and learning, and proper ventilation is an important part of COVID-19 health and safety measures in all Vancouver School District schools and workspaces. By definition, ventilation is providing fresh, outdoor air in place of air that has been used. 

Ventilation in School Sites 

In an effort to strengthen COVID-19 safety measures, the District implemented a program to increase outdoor air ventilation and improve air filtration in its facilities.  This included four primary activities:

• Increasing the amount of outdoor air to indoor spaces by resetting louvres and controls in ventilation equipment.

• Upgrading and retrofitting ventilation equipment to “MERV-13” filters, as recommended by the Ministry of Education. Filters are replaced three times a year.  This is continuing through 2023/24

• Ensuring all exterior windows are accessible and can be controlled by staff and students where available

Through this process, The District’s ventilation systems were inspected and updated at all 108 schools. Updates included rebuilding aging motors, replacing drive belts, repairing stuck louvres, updating controls and changing approximately 7000 filters district wide.

Resources and Contact Information 

School Specific Ventilation Information - Sept 29, 2023

Indoor Air Quality in Schools | Vancouver Coastal Health (vch.ca) - March 2, 2023

Additional information is also available on our website, under COVID-19 Updates.

For specific questions about ventilation in your school, please email info@vsb.bc.ca