“When parents send their kids to school, they deserve to know that their children are safe. The aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, during which New York schoolchildren were exposed to life-threatening toxins after returning to schools in the Impact Zone, showed that we must do more to protect children, families, and teachers following a crisis.

The development of comprehensive, practiced emergency preparedness plans that address environmental health hazards is critical to this effort. I’m also calling on NIOSH to conduct a study on the long-term health of the children who lived and attended schools in the Impact Zone in the wake of 9/11 so that impacted New Yorkers can get the healthcare that they need.”

"When Schools of Ground Zero was written 25 years ago, the trauma of that event was ever-present. Looking back on it now, the emotional scars are still there, but for me, at least, also the memories of what went so right in the aftermath.

Five months after the attack, my children and their classmates were finally able to return to their beloved public elementary school after the environmental safety of the building had been confirmed. As they settled back in, the world came to their door. Astronauts, movie stars and politicians sought to use their fame to stir up a little joy. Strangers offered gifts, such as stunning origami artwork of 1,000 paper cranes made by children in Japan, a symbol of peace. Free seats were offered for the Harry Potter premiere at Lincoln Center. An episode of Reading Rainbow was even produced about P.S. 234’s experience. The children felt that warm embrace. They knew they were being supported and would be okay.

Not every school was so fortunate. Students and staff at Stuyvesant High School inhaled fumes from a nearby barge being used as dumping ground for debris from the World Trade Center site. Years later, there are reports of cancer clusters of those who were in that school at that time.

Today, health and safety issues in schools still dominate the conversation episodically, but the context is usually school shootings rather than ventilation systems following an aerial attack. However, the lessons learned are probably similar: officials can’t be counted on to do the right thing; bureaucracy often gets in the way of necessary action; impacts are felt unevenly, often determined by socio-economic status; and, if you’re lucky, trauma can trigger community support which, in turn, can help one heal."

"There are still no words today to describe the horror of a colleague from CSEA losing scores of its members, nor my neighbor learning her husband would not come home again. Fortunately, not one student was lost, yet it was every parent’s worst nightmare to be unable to reach their child that morning. When schools were directed to re-open, very practical questions emerged: were the particulates and fumes that entered schools through windows, doors, and ventilation systems remediated? What toxics were in the air inside and out? Collaborating with Parent Association leaders, we researched and analyzed indoor and outdoor air quality data. There are big lessons in this documentary report, among them, be prepared, and push public health and environment agencies to put children first in disaster recovery,"

"The aftermath of the terrorist attacks on 9/11 brought many lessons on how to equip schools and families following a crisis. We need to continue implementing emergency preparedness recommendations that address environmental health risks to help mobilize responses to safety and health needs and utilize resources that keep impacted staff, school children, and their families safe."

"Everyone has seen the 9/11 attacks. Importantly, no children were lost or injured despite the lack of emergency plans. Less known and less appreciated is what happened to schoolchildren and youth in the weeks and months following. As Wall Street sought to reopen markets, schools were urged to reopen as well, with students doubling up into classrooms outside the Impact Zone or simply returning to their own school, like Stuyvesant. Within days, our office heard from parents about headaches, coughs, and breathing issues, and long lines at the school nurse’s office. I re-allocated the last grant dollars we had for NYC work to commission Sarah and her husband John to track and report on the evacuation and re-occupancy of local schools. We also convened parent leaders several times, allowing them to share their concerns. Parent Associations raised their own funds, hired their own environmental consultants, and forced the clean-up of contaminated buildings. Teacher health was impacted. NIOSH found evidence of new onset diseases among 300 staff who were returned to Stuyvesant High School, yet no similar study has been done for children and youth.

Today, no federal, state, or local agency is expressly authorized to assess and to “clear” a disaster-contaminated building for safe re-entry and re-use by children and NIOSH is authorized but has not yet conducted a Youth Cohort Study of children who lived or went to school in the Impact Zone that year."