Middle schooler leads $11.5 million project to build air filters for schools

Eniola Shokunbi said she wants to be president of the United States, but first she’s making an impact on her local community.

“Eniola is fabulous,” State Senator Matt Lesser said. “She wows every room she’s in front of. She’s a real rock star.”

In fifth grade, she led the efforts to create an air filter system that’s able to remove cold and COVID viruses from classrooms.

“The air goes through all the sides,” she said. “And it comes out of the top, so it filters in and out.”

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The filters were built and installed by Shokunbi and classmates at the Commodore MacDonough STEM Academy in Middletown. Students also worked closely with scientists and the University of Connecticut.

It cost $60 to make and consists of a box fan, four furnace filters, duct tape and cardboard. It was tested and certified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in North Carolina for its efficiency

“It showed that the air filter took out over 99% of viruses in the air,” Shokunbi said. “And that it was effective.”

On Tuesday, Shokunbi was in the room as the State Bond Commission unanimous approved $11.5 million for the construction and installation of the air filter system for other schools in the state.

The funding will go to UConn as part of the school’s Supplemental Air Filtration for Education Program.

“A lot of people, they don’t realize sometimes, that they only thing standing between them and getting sick is science,” Shokunbi said. “If we’re not investing in that, then we’re not investing the kids’ future.”

She said her goal is to get the filters into every classroom in America.

“I want them to go to school knowing that they’re safe, that they’re health, that they can learn,” Shokunbi said. “I really love explaining to people and seeing their faces, seeing them realize that this could change so many lives.”