Wimberley ISD adopts Acteev Protect™ masks

January 21, 2021

The Texas Hill Country district has distributed the masks to all faculty, staff and high school students

Ascend has partnered with the Wimberley Independent School District to participate in a trial of Acteev Protect™ face masks.

WISD, located in the Texas Hill Country, distributed masks to all district employees in December and to secondary students after they returned from winter break.

WISD safety director Roz Simmons, who helped distribute the masks, says they have been a hit. “I’ve received great feedback about the wearability of the masks, they’re soft, light and washable,” Simmons said.

Acteev Protect masks are antimicrobial, odor and mildew resistant, and can be washed multiple times on normal laundry cycles while maintaining effectiveness after more than 50 washes. The adjustable masks are sized for students and adults aged 12 and up. Ascend provided the University of Houston football program with Acteev Protect masks last fall. 

The opportunity came about as a result of a connection between WISD school board member Will Conley and Ascend.

“As an elected volunteer I’m always looking for resources I have access to that can assist us in providing the highest level of public safety for our district,” Conley said. “I’m pleased to run across this opportunity and add another piece to the safety measures we have in place at WISD for our students and staff.”

Lu Zhang, Ascend’s VP of Acteev, says the company is partnered with the district because the unique features of the masks make them well suited for the school setting. “Teachers and students wear masks all day to protect themselves and each other from spreading the virus, and they deserve a mask that is comfortable and breathable,” Zhang said. “We are proud to support a Texas district who has demonstrated such a commitment to keep their learners, faculty and staff safe.”

The mask initiative is just the latest effort WISD has made to keep its students and staff safe during the pandemic. Currently WISD maintenance staff members are installing the Safe Breathing Zone Units into classrooms. The units combine ultraviolet light, bipolar ionization and HEPA filtration technologies to ensure classrooms, administrative and nurses offices, libraries, music rooms, and athletic halls will be supplied with a curtain of super filtrated air. In the fall semester needle-point ionization units were installed into all of the district’s air units that serve large rooms, such as cafeterias, gymnasiums and hallways, clean and filter the air.