Another year has come and gone and schools across the country are preparing for another spring break. For most schools the harsh winter months take a heavy toll on the conditions within classrooms, hallways, restrooms, and cafeterias. This break in the school year provides an ideal opportunity for you to give your school a thorough spring break cleaning.

Following a few basic guidelines will help you maximize the benefits of your school spring cleaning initiative.

Have a Spring Break Cleaning Plan

What will differentiate your school spring cleaning from your normal cleaning routines? Create a "Spring Break Cleaning Plan" that clearly itemizes and defines each step within your spring break cleaning routine. Having a documented "plan" will serve to formalize your routine and provide a mechanism for training of your cleaning teams.

Most "plans" will contain provisions for the following:

Deep Restroom Cleaning

Your school's restrooms take a beating during the school year. Heavy traffic and heavy usage accumulate over the fall and winter months. Your spring break cleaning is your opportunity to thoroughly clean and disinfect those restrooms. This will help establish a fresh cleanliness baseline that can then be maintained for the remainder of the school year.

Floors - A School Spring Cleaning Priority

In most areas of the country the winter months bring harsh treatment of a school's floors. Hallways, classrooms, restrooms, gyms, etc. all suffer from the tracking in and embedding of dirt, sludge, and grime. Over a period of time this deep accumulation can create health hazards for students and faculty---slips and falls, illness due to embedded allergens and bacteria, etc.

Make sure that your spring break cleaning plan includes a deep cleaning of all carpet, wood, concrete, and tile flooring surfaces within your school.

Thorough Touch-Point Cleaning

Every school is full of surfaces that are exposed to heavy human contact. Those surfaces include light switches, door knobs, faucets, push plates, elevator buttons, etc. Without proper touch-point cleaning, those surfaces can become a breeding ground for the flu virus and other pathogens. Your school spring cleaning program should include a thorough cleaning of all such high touch-point surfaces.

To achieve the maximum effectiveness of your touch-point cleaning there are a few protocols that should be followed:

Use the Right Products and Techniques

There are several types of disinfectants that are effective on both hard and soft surfaces. These products will come with specific instructions for use (dwell times, mix-ratios, amounts to be used, etc.). Ensure that those directions are followed closely. The dwell time is especially critical since that is the amount of time the product needs to reside on the area being cleaned in order to achieve maximum results.

Ensure that your cleaning staff is using the required tools and materials. This could include an electrostatic dispensing system, gloves, masks, and microfiber towels.

Following these guidelines will help make your upcoming school spring cleaning a complete success.