Western Cooling Efficiency Center at the University of California, Davis is conducting a research study to investigate indoor air quality in California classrooms. The goal of the study is to better understand ventilation rates and carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in schools, and the association between clean air in classrooms and student absence.
Our study is recruiting school districts that took part in the CalSHAPE Ventilation Program and are logging CO2 using eligible thermostats, which enable the data to be accessed remotely.
Your participation will ultimately inform strategies to improve indoor air quality and student health.
To participate, schools will need to:
- Sign a data sharing agreement
- Create a log-in and password to grant researchers “view only” access to CO₂ data
- Provide a key linking thermostat names to classrooms
All data will be anonymized and aggregated to protect school district confidentiality.
As a thank-you, participating districts will receive a $350 Visa gift card—you can treat your staff to lunch on us!
A subset of schools may also be invited to join a second phase of the study, which involves sharing classroom-level absence data. This will help researchers explore the relationship between indoor air quality and student attendance.
Please fill out this quick form to indicate your interest in participating.
About the CalSHAPE Program
The California Schools Healthy Air, Plumbing, and Efficiency (CalSHAPE) Ventilation Program provides funding for schools to assess and adjust ventilation rates, replace high-efficiency HVAC air filters, and install carbon dioxide (CO2) monitors. This program aims to improve indoor air quality in schools by ensuring adequate ventilation, which is crucial for maintaining a healthy learning environment.
The CalSHAPE Ventilation Program requires that all classrooms be equipped with a CO2 monitor. This requirement is intended to provide the needed data for schools to bring in more outdoor air for ventilation as needed. By adjusting ventilation rates based on CO2 levels, schools can help reduce the risk of respiratory infection and improve student health and learning.
Study Phase I: CO2 Data and Ventilation Rates
Our study goal is to gather CO2 data from 500 to 1,000 California K-12 classrooms that took part in the CalSHAPE Ventilation Program to characterize their ventilation rates. We are interested in understanding the long-term benefits of the CalSHAPE Ventilation Program in providing adequate ventilation in California classrooms. This analysis may point to the continuing needs for improvement in some schools.
Study Phase II: Clean Air and Student Absence
This study phase aims to investigate the relationships between clean air – outdoor air ventilation and filtered recirculation air – provided to elementary school classrooms and student absence. It is our hypothesis that classrooms with more clean air will have lower student absence, while accounting for other factors. This study will inform the importance of providing clean air in schools in supporting a healthy learning environment for students.
Expected Outcomes
The expected outcomes of this study include:
- A comprehensive dataset of CO2 concentrations and ventilation rates in California classrooms.
- An analysis of the CO2 dataset and current state of ventilation in California classrooms.
- A publication that investigates the association between clean air provided in classrooms and student absence.
By achieving these objectives, this study will further our understanding of indoor air quality in California schools and help promote a healthy learning environment for our students.
FAQs About Participating in Study Phase I
We will collect CO2 data from participating school districts for the 2025-2026 school year. This data will be linked with information about school buildings and HVAC systems that school districts had already submitted to the CalSHAPE Program. This data will be used to analyze ventilation rates and CO2 levels in California classrooms. All data will be anonymized and aggregated to protect school district confidentiality.
Participating school districts will receive a report comparing their CO2 levels to those of similar classrooms, providing valuable insights into their school’s ventilation conditions. Additionally, your district will be contributing to a comprehensive dataset that can be used for future research and benchmarking, helping to inform strategies for improving indoor air quality and student health.
We anticipate that participating school districts will need to commit minimal time (2-4 hours) to provide data access to the research team using the Pelican thermostat dashboard. We will work closely with district staff to collect data and ensure that the process is as seamless as possible. School districts will receive a $350 gift card for their time and effort.
All data collected from participating school districts will be anonymized and aggregated to protect district confidentiality. We will ensure that all data is stored securely. After filling out the interest form above, we will send a data sharing agreement for your review that explains to the school administration how their data will be used.
Participation in the study is voluntary, and there are no costs or penalties associated with participating. While school districts are free to withdraw from the study at any time if they choose to do so, any data contributed so far will remain part of the database and will not be deleted.
Study Phase I is aiming to recruit 8 to 12 school districts to participate. We are expecting each school district to contribute CO2 data from about 100 classrooms and possibly many more if available. From these participating school districts, we plan to select 3 to 5 of them to take part in Study Phase II, totaling 150 to 250 classrooms.
We will gather classroom-level data from school districts, including daily absence counts and student demographic information, such as gender and number of students qualifying for free and reduced price meals. We also need additional information from facilities staff in order to estimate the amount of equivalent clean air provided to classrooms, such as whether portable air cleaners are used, and MERV rating of air filters currently in use. School districts will be compensated for their time and effort in providing this data.
