RB, The Makers Of Lysol, And The CDC Foundation Partner To Help Schools Re-Open Safely

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Sep 24, 2020, 09:00 ET

PARSIPPANY, N.J., Sept. 24, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- RB today announced that it is partnering with the CDC Foundation to support the reopening of schools in an extension of its HERE for Healthy Schools initiative.

Working with the CDC Foundation, Lysol is creating and distributing a physical "Welcome Back Pack" to 14,000 select Title I* elementary schools across the U.S. and helping teachers bring healthy habits into their classrooms in fun and engaging ways. The packs, which will also be available digitally for teachers nationwide to download and print at http://www.Lysol.com/here, are filled with fun educational materials, posters, floor decals, and more to educate students on healthy habits. Kids In Need Foundation (KINF), an organization which provides the support and tools needed for teachers to teach and learners to learn, will help distribute the packs to 9,000 of the select schools, and is partnering with Lysol to coordinate the donation of Lysol Disinfecting Wipes to these schools.

Each Title I school that receives a physical Welcome Back Pack will receive materials to be used in hallways, teacher lounges, and other common areas around the school, as well as materials for teachers to use specifically in their individual classrooms. The assets included in the packs all focus on healthy habits such as proper social distancing, cough and sneeze etiquette, handwashing, mask-wearing, and making sure to alert parents and teachers if you feel sick. Over the next three years, Lysol is looking to further expand HERE for Healthy Schools – its mission to curb the spread of illness and help kids miss less school so they are able to learn, grow and thrive – into every Title I school in the U.S., reaching 15 million children by 2022.

"At RB, we know that the best weapon against germs is knowledge, and we're proud to partner with the CDC Foundation and Kids In Need Foundation to bring healthy habits to classrooms in a fun and engaging way," said E. Yuri Hermida, EVP North America Hygiene for RB. "This back-to-school season is unlike any we've ever experienced, and it's as important as ever that we use our expertise to help schools re-open safely."

"With schools across the country welcoming students back, it's vital that students, teachers and parents put into practice healthy habits that will help stop the spread of germs," said Judy Monroe, MD, president and CEO of the CDC Foundation. "These practices are currently among the most effective tools to prevent the spread of COVID-19. We thank Lysol for their generous support that has made these creative Welcome Back Packs possible."

"We are proud to partner with Lysol to provide the necessary supplies to under-resourced teachers and students across the country to help meet their health and safety needs," said Corey Gordon, CEO of KINF. "All schools are experiencing a year with unmatched circumstances. For teachers and students in underserved schools, those circumstances are met with a higher level of need than ever before. This collaboration with Lysol to supply 9,000 schools with products and resources to help ensure that classrooms are safe for teachers and students, will allow them to focus on education and learning."

Earlier this year, Lysol announced plans to invest more than $20 million over three years to expand HERE for Healthy Schools into every Title I school in the U.S., reaching 15 million children by 2022. Through education, research funding, and strategic partnerships, the program aims to minimize the spread of germs in the classroom.

HERE for Healthy Schools is part of RB's Fight for Access efforts to improve access to health, hygiene and nutrition for all. To learn more about HERE for Healthy Schools, visit: www.hereforhealthyschools.lysol.com.

*As provisioned by the U.S. Elementary and Secondary Education Act, schools with high percentages of children from low-income families are eligible to receive federal funding and other assistance, known as Title I funding, to support successful education outcomes.

ABOUT HERE FOR HEALTHY SCHOOLS
In 2012 Lysol created the Healthy Habits Program in partnership with the National Education Association (NEA), National PTA, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Healthy Habits Program includes downloadable activities for teachers and parents of children grades K-5 to help them build illness prevention habits. As a part of Lysol's mission to curb the spread of illness in classrooms, Lysol expanded the program and created the HERE for Healthy Schools initiative. Every year 60 million school days are missed by children nationwide due to preventable illnesses like cold and flu, taking away the lasting experiences and learning they gain in the classroom. By educating on healthy habits, funding research, and working with partners, Lysol is sharing its mission to help kids miss less school so they are able to learn and grow and thrive. For more information visit: hereforhealthyschools.lysol.com

ABOUT RB
RB* is driven by its purpose to protect, heal and nurture in a relentless pursuit of a cleaner, healthier world. We fight to make access to the highest-quality hygiene, wellness and nourishment a right, not a privilege, for everyone.

RB is proud to have a stable of trusted household brands found in households in more than 190 countries. These include Enfamil, Nutramigen, Nurofen, Strepsils, Gaviscon, Mucinex, Durex, Scholl, Clearasil, Lysol, Dettol, Veet, Harpic, Cillit Bang, Mortein, Finish, Vanish, Calgon, Woolite, Air Wick and more. 20 million RB products a day are bought by consumers globally.

RB's passion to put consumers and people first, to seek out new opportunities, to strive for excellence in all that we do, and to build shared success with all our partners, while doing the right thing, always is what guides the work of our 40,000+ diverse and talented colleagues worldwide.

For more information visit www.rb.com

*RB is the trading name of the Reckitt Benckiser group of companies

ABOUT CDC FOUNDATION
The CDC Foundation helps the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) save and improve lives by unleashing the power of collaboration between CDC, philanthropies, corporations, organizations and individuals to protect the health, safety and security of America and the world. The CDC Foundation is the go-to nonprofit authorized by Congress to mobilize philanthropic partners and private-sector resources to support CDC's critical health protection mission. Since 1995, the CDC Foundation has raised over $1 billion and launched more than 1,000 programs impacting a variety of health threats from chronic disease conditions including cardiovascular disease and cancer, to infectious diseases like rotavirus and HIV, to emergency responses, including COVID-19 and Ebola. The CDC Foundation managed hundreds of CDC-led programs in the United States and in more than 140 countries last year. Visit www.cdcfoundation.org for more information. Follow the Foundation on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.

ABOUT KIDS IN NEED FOUNDATION
Kids In Need Foundation provides the support and tools needed for teachers to teach and learners to learn. A quality education is the best gateway to opportunity and students cannot achieve their full potential without it. With a focus on supporting teachers and students in schools most in need nationwide, Kids In Need Foundation believes that every child in America should have equal opportunity and access to a quality education. Founded in 1995, Kids In Need Foundation, a national 501(c)(3) charitable organization, has distributed $1 billion in school supplies since its inception. For more information, visit KINF.org, and join us on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram: @KidsInNeed.

In the aftermath of schools closing due to COVID-19 earlier this year, KINF conducted a national survey to its teacher network. This survey of teachers highlighted the clear need for cleaning and disinfection products, as they expressed their concerns about how they were going to keep students safe and healthy amidst the pandemic. This collective concern was heightened knowing their respective schools already lacked the funding to provide basic supplies for students, let alone what is needed in the new environment. Serving under-resourced teachers and students nationwide in schools with a high percentage of students participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), KINF has remained involved with personnel at the district and school level, as planning for the new school year began.

SOURCE Lysol