Launched in the summer of 2023, the OK-AIR project represents the first large-scale study in Oklahoma to investigate how different air purification strategies can enhance indoor air quality in early childhood classrooms. This study is a longitudinal, cluster-randomized 2×2 factorial trial conducted in Head Start centers across two implementation cohorts: Cohort 1 (five centers and 20 classrooms, 2023–2024) and Cohort 2 (11 centers and 59 classrooms, 2025–2026), with expanded participation from rural areas.
Led by Dr. Diane Horm and the ECEI team, the project collaborates with Dr. Changjie Cai and colleagues at the OU Health Sciences Center to evaluate two interventions—portable air purifiers and upper-room germicidal ultraviolet (UV-C) systems—across both urban and rural Head Start programs. In addition, Dr. Jason Vogel and his lab at OU-Norman contribute by conducting viral analyses.
This study is the first of its kind in Oklahoma’s early care and education (ECE) settings. It not only assesses the effectiveness of these interventions in reducing airborne particles and viruses, as well as their associated health impacts on young children and ECE teachers, but also examines how teachers and administrators perceive and experience the implementation of these technologies in classroom environments.
Our OK-AIR Project is a test of the potential for low-cost and low-burden interventions (e.g., air filters) to have significant and meaningful impacts on children’s health and children’s development. The overall goals of OK-AIR are to:
- Determine if the reliable use of air cleaning devices improves the classroom air quality in ECE settings;
- Investigate the feasibility of using inexpensive air cleaning devices in ECE classrooms;
- Assess if better air quality in ECE classrooms results in positive impacts on teachers’ health and children’s health and behavior (i.e., absences).