Back to School Tips for a Successful and Clean School Year

By SC Johnson Professional

Summer is almost over, which means students, faculty and staff are returning to educational facilities that have been closed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Germs within a school are unavoidable but following proper cleaning protocols can aid in preventing the spread of germs and harmful pathogens.

When preparing to reopen, facility managers should take a wholistic approach to maintain a safe and healthy environment. From installing additional hand hygiene stations to properly cleaning and disinfecting high-touch surfaces, consider the following best practices to help with a successful start to the new school year:

• Keep hand hygiene products stocked: According to the CDC, hand hygiene is one of the most effective ways to remove germs, avoid getting sick and prevent the spread of germs to others.[1]  Without access to hand soap or hand sanitizer it’s difficult to ensure proper handwashing protocols, so stock facilities with soaps that remove more than 99% of dirt and germs and contain skin moisturizers to help prevent dry skin, like SC Johnson Professional Refresh Foam Soap. When soap and water aren’t available, consider providing alcohol-free hand sanitizer that eliminates up to 99.99% of many type of common germs in as little as 15 seconds, like  SC Johnson Professional InstantFOAM™ Non-Alcohol Pure hand sanitizer or with 80% alcohol that kills 99.9999% of common germs in as little as 15 seconds, like InstantFOAM™ Complete Pure hand sanitizer.
• Clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces: High-touch surfaces can be breeding grounds for germs and harmful pathogens if not cleaned properly. Surfaces such as door handles, tables, desks, chairs, and light switches should be wiped down multiple times a day to reduce the spread of germs. Facility managers can use a multi-surface disinfectant such as Windex® Multi-Surface Disinfectant Sanitizer Cleaner that kills 99.9% of germs when used as directed. Or try Trushot 2.0™ Multi-surface, Restroom Cleaner & Disinfectant a fast and effective one-step spray and wipe virucide and disinfectant
• Follow label instructions and contact times: To properly disinfect surfaces, facility managers should follow product labels that include safety and application instructions. Some products have specific contact times that need to be followed for effectiveness. If a product has a contact time of three minutes, that means that the surface should remain wet with the disinfectant for at least three minutes. Wiping away the product before the three minutes have passed can decrease the product’s effectiveness.
• Revitalize floor surfaces:  While students are on break, take the opportunity to revitalize your floors for the new school year. Floors can be one of a school’s most expensive assets and tend to experience the most wear and tear. Day-to-day foot traffic creates scratches, and worn areas and soils become embedded in the flooring which can cause discoloration. To combat this, use a floor care product such as the SC Johnson Professional Floor Care System, which includes a stripper, finish and a cleaner that is low-odor and easy to work with on a daily basis. Implementing preventative measures, such as scrubbing and recoating regularly, along with corrective measures when necessary, helps reduce floor maintenance costs and can protect a school’s flooring.

Now more than ever, it’s important to follow cleaning protocols closely in order to avoid spreading germs. The emergence of COVID-19 demonstrated just how important it is to ramp up cleaning processes along with using the right products to keep building occupants safe and healthy.