Community, COVID-19

Spectrum Health Donates PPE to Schools

Students, Staff Protected and Grateful

**News release shared with permission from Kent ISD**

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Nov. 12, 2020 – Students and staff in schools throughout Kent ISD are more protected against the spread of COVID-19 thanks to valuable donations of personal protection equipment (PPE) from Spectrum Health.

The health system’s first donation to schools in August included 200,000 isolation masks, 10,000 pairs of nitrile gloves, 330 gallons of hand sanitizer, 4,000 face shields, and 110 gallons of disinfectant. It arrived at a time when PPE was difficult to acquire.

In October, Spectrum Health made an additional donation of 140,000 gloves, over 135,000 masks, 3,400 face shields and 1,500 disposable isolation gowns.  Many of these items important in protecting against the virus were difficult for schools to obtain just a few months ago.

“School districts throughout the country faced insurmountable challenges when crafting plans to open their doors this fall. Schools lacked critical resources and infrastructure to safely have students and staff back together on campus. What was impossible became possible through the generous support from the Spectrum Health Team,” says Scott Smith, Cedar Springs Public Schools Superintendent. “They were literally “all in” from the onset of this work. Spectrum Health partnered with West Michigan districts in three key areas: comprehensive planning, staffing, and in the provision and procurement of PPE. We can’t thank Spectrum Health enough for their willingness to partner with us in such a time of critical need.”

“At a time when budgets are tight, and supplies are scarce, Spectrum Health saved schools considerable money by donating common PPE equipment such as face masks, face shields, and disinfectant as well as specialized PPE schools had difficulty sourcing. We’re so thankful for Spectrum Health’s support in helping to keep our students and staff throughout the community safe and healthy,” says Kevin Philipps, Kent ISD’s Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services, who helped coordinate and distribute the donated materials.

Please direct media inquiries to Joy Walczak, Kent ISD Communications Specialist at joywalczak@kentisd.org or 906.632.6290.

About Kent ISD
Kent ISD is a regional educational service agency devoted to achievement for all students.  We provide instructional and administrative services to more than 300 schools, 20 public districts, three non-public districts, and many public school academies and non-public schools within our boundaries. We serve the broader community by helping our schools prepare nearly 120,000 students for school and life success. 

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People are at the heart of everything we do, and the inspiration for our legacy of outstanding outcomes, innovation, strong community partnerships, philanthropy and transparency. Corewell Health is a not-for-profit health system that provides health care and coverage with an exceptional team of 60,000+ dedicated people—including more than 11,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and more than 15,000 nurses providing care and services in 21 hospitals, 300+ outpatient locations and several post-acute facilities—and Priority Health, a provider-sponsored health plan serving more than 1.3 million members. Through experience and collaboration, we are reimagining a better, more equitable model of health and wellness. For more information, visit corewellhealth.org.