Pearson K12 Learning and Flinn Scientific Donate PPE to Two Hospitals Battling Coronavirus Pandemic

PARAMUS, N.J. — APRIL 21, 2020 — Pearson K12 Learning and its science-education partner Flinn Scientific have teamed up to make a joint donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) to help frontline healthcare workers at hospitals in New York and near Chicago, two cities in the U.S. hardest hit by the coronavirus.

Together, Pearson K12 and Flinn Scientific will donate a total of 56,000 nitrile gloves to Elmhurst Hospital Center in Queens, a borough in New York City with a large ethnically and linguistically diverse population that is currently the global epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, and Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospital in Geneva, IL, an acute-care facility serving potentially compromised cancer patients which is near Flinn Scientific’s headquarters and in a suburb of Chicago, a major coronavirus hotspot.

“We are all indebted to the brave healthcare professionals who are risking their own lives, and that of their families, to help save those stricken by this terrible virus,” said Bethlam Forsa, CEO of Pearson K12 Learning. “By joining forces with Flinn, we are able to contribute some vital protective equipment to help keep doctors, nurses and other staff at these hospitals a little safer while they perform the critical work of providing care to COVID-19 patients, many of whom are the most vulnerable residents of their communities."

“Flinn has a long history of providing safety equipment to schools and this equipment is now in short supply to the many first responders working to save the lives of countless Americans. Our joint donation is a small way we can support these brave individuals in these extremely trying times and our support of our local hospital, which is a part of a large Chicago-based medical group, will make supplies available to other hard-hit hospitals in the area,” said Flinn Scientific CEO Mike Lavelle.

The pandemic has disproportionately affected New York’s most disadvantaged populations, largely ethnic minority and immigrant enclaves in Queens.With nearly 43,000 cases reported as of April 21, Queens County accounts for the greatest number of confirmed coronavirus cases among the more than 139,000 in New York City, according to data from the New York State Department of Health. Meanwhile, Cook County, which includes Chicago and ranks as having the highest number of cases in a U.S. county outside of New York State, and its surrounding suburban counties have nearly 30,000 combined positive cases of COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University and the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Pearson K12 Learning is a next-generation learning company that produces award-winning learning solutions that empower educators and engage students with the highest quality content. Its partner, Flinn Scientific, is a major supplier of scientific equipment and apparatus for biology, chemistry, earth and environmental science, forensic, physics, and safety products. Recognized as industry leaders, they together serve learners with innovative, student-centered science programs that turn classrooms into active, hands-on learning environments.