To LHS math teacher Mr. Tim Budge, germs and sickness are just another day at the office. He understands that working with kids means numerous germs and the sickness that follow. Mr. Budge spends his eighth period in the MASH, where he sees the textbooks as a sufficient medium for transferring germs given the frequency with which students use them: “Chromebooks, books, desks; a school, by nature is a germ factory. Kids and adults sneeze. I’m not worried about it, but I know it’s there,” he said. According to Mr. Budge, his immune system has built up over his 18 years as a teacher, which he credits to the germy nature of the school.

Jillian Ruff

Though Mr. Budge sees the school as a “germ factory.” he was a little surprised when he saw the results of the test: “It’s the nature of the beast. We are in a school of 2,000 students and 100-plus, maybe 200 people who work in the school, so I understand there are going to be a lot of germ hazards. It’s hard to prevent. I don’t know if we could wipe down every single [book]. I think you are kind of aware of it, but when you see it, you are like wow!” he commented.