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If You Are a School "Going Green"

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Twenty percent of Americans go to school every day. It should be the goal of every school building to be the most ideal learning and teaching environment possible for students and staff. Energy, water and resource efficient schools are the target for everyone involved in designing, operating and using school buildings. There are several established guidelines or rating systems that currently exist for schools. The Collaborative for High Performance Schools Exit EPA Click for disclaimer and LEED for Schools Exit EPA Click for disclaimer are two examples.

An existing school can also optimize its operation and performance by signing up for Energy Star for K-12 School Districts, the Collaborative for High Performing Schools, Best Practices Manual Exit EPA Click for disclaimer and the Center for Green Schools. To get started, follow these seven steps:

    1. Establish A Green Team or Eco-Committee
    2. Adopt An Environmental Vision Statement or Planet Pledge
    3. Conduct A School Environmental Survey or Audit: consider: Site Management, Energy Use, Water Use, Indoor Environmental Quality, Materials and Resources.
    4. Create A Green School Action Plan
    5. Monitor and Evaluate Progress
    6. Integrate Greening into the Curriculum
    7. Inform, Involve, and Celebrate!

EPA can help you reduce your school's environmental footprint. Here's how. The links below include both Mid-Atlantic and Agency-wide resources.

Mid-Atlantic Region || Mid-Atlantic Env'l Assessment & Innovation || Mid-Atlantic Going Green

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