SECOND ANNUAL U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GREEN RIBBON SCHOOLS ANNOUNCED; FIRST-EVER DISTRICT AWARDEES NAMED

Award Honors Schools and Districts for Reducing Environmental Impact and Costs; Improving Health; and Offering Environmental Education

 April 22, 2013

Chair of White House Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley and Acting Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency Bob Persiacepe joined U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today to announce the second annual U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools award honorees. 

 Sixty-four schools were honored for their exemplary efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, promote better health, and ensure effective environmental education, including civics and green career pathways. In addition, 14 districts were honored for the first-ever District Sustainability Award.  Duncan, Persiacepe, and Sutley made the announcement at Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter School, in Washington, DC, one of the 2013 honored schools.

The schools were confirmed from a pool of candidates voluntarily nominated by 32 state education agencies.   The list of selectees includes 54 public schools and 10 private schools. The public schools include seven charter, five magnet and four career and technical schools. The schools serve various grade levels, including 40 elementary, 23 middle and 19 high schools are among them, with several schools having various K-12 configurations, from 29 states and the District of Columbia.  Over half of the 2013 honorees serve a student body more than 40 percent of which is eligible for free and reduced price lunch.  The list of all selected schools and districts, as well as their nomination packages, can be found here.  A report with highlights on the 78 honorees can be found here.

“Today’s honorees are modeling a comprehensive approach to being green,” said Secretary Duncan. “They are demonstrating ways schools can simultaneously cut costs; improve health, performance and equity; and provide an education geared toward the jobs of the future. In fact, the selected districts are saving millions of dollars as a result of their greening efforts. And the great thing is that the resources these honorees are using are available for free to all schools."

“Preparing students for success in the 21st century economy begins in our schools. The schools and districts being honored today are modeling the best practices in reducing environmental impact and cutting costs, creating a healthier learning environment, and providing students with an education geared toward the jobs of the future,” said Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley.

"EPA is proud to join the Department of Education in recognizing our nation's U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools for their remarkable efforts to create healthier learning spaces and educate students on the importance of environmental protection," said EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe. "U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools are not only cutting costs thanks to energy-saving practices and use of more efficient technology, but they're also reducing instances of pollution-related illnesses like asthma, a leading cause of student absence. The students who attend these schools are better prepared than ever to become the next generation of environmental stewards and bring about a healthier, more sustainable future."

The Department is looking forward to a third year of award, and will be publishing updated competition criteria this summer, once again working closely with participating states, collaborating organizations and partner agencies.  State education agencies are encouraged to indicate intent to nominate schools in 2014 by August 1, 2013.

More information on the federal recognition award can be found here.  Resources for all schools to move toward the three Pillars in which the 2013 honorees are exemplary can be found here.

Alabama

• Harriette W. Gwin Elementary School

Hoover, AL

• Munford Middle School and Munford High School

Munford, AL

• Fayetteville High School

Sylacauga, AL

• Talladega County

Arkansas

• Fayetteville District 

California

• Charles Evans Hughes Middle School

Long Beach, CA

• Journey School

Aliso Viejo, CA

• Redding School of the Arts II

Redding, CA

• Prospect Sierra School

El Cerrito, CA

• Oak Park Unified School District 

Colorado

• Kinard Core Knowledge Middle School

Ft. Collins, CO

• Douglas County School District

Connecticut

• Barnard Environmental Studies Magnet School

New Haven, CT

• Environmental Sciences Magnet School at Mary Hooker

Hartford, CT

• Common Ground High School

New Haven, CT

Delaware

• St. Andrew’s School

Middletown, DE

District of Columbia

• Mundo Verde Bilingual Public Charter School

Washington, DC

• Washington Yu Ying Public Charter School

Washington, DC

• Woodrow Wilson High School

Washington, DC

Florida

• Driftwood Middle School

Hollywood, FL

• St. Paul Lutheran School

Lakeland, FL

• School District of Palm Beach County

Georgia

• Ford Elementary School, 

Acworth, GA

• Gwinnett County Public Schools

Indiana

• Guion Creek Middle School

Indianapolis, IN

Iowa

• Starmont Community School 

Arlington IA

• Des Moines Independent Community School District

Kansas

• Bluejacket-Flint Elementary School

Shawnee, KS

Kentucky

• Cane Run Elementary School 

Louisville, KY

• Northern Elementary School

Georgetown, KY 

• Locust Trace AgriScience Farm

Lexington, KY

Maryland

• Cedar Grove Elementary School

Germantown, MD

• Summit Hall Elementary School

Gaithersburg, MD

• Montgomery County Public Schools 

Massachusetts

• Manchester Essex Regional Middle High School

Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA

• Quincy High School

Quincy, MA

• Berkshire School

Sheffield, MA

• Acton Public Schools and Acton-Boxborough Regional School District 

Minnesota

• Jeffers Pond Elementary School

Prior Lake, MN

• Heritage E-STEM Middle School

West St. Paul, MN

• School of Environmental Studies

Apple Valley, MN

• Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools

Mississippi

• Watkins Elementary School

Jackson, MS

Nebraska

• King Science and Technology Magnet Center

Omaha, NE

New Hampshire

• Phillips Exeter Academy

Exeter, NH

New Jersey

• Bedwell Elementary School

Bernardsville, NJ

• Summerfield Elementary School

Neptune, NJ

New York

• Crompond School

Yorktown Heights, NY

• PS 057 Hubert H. Humphrey

Staten Island, NY

• Rye Country Day School

Rye, NY

Ohio

• Kenston High School

Chagrin Falls, OH

Pennsylvania

• Albert M. Greenfield Elementary School

Philadelphia, PA

• Broughal Community Middle School

Bethlehem, PA

• Nazareth Area Middle School

Nazareth, PA

• Westtown School

West Chester, PA

• Lower Merion School District

Rhode Island

• The Compass School

Kingston, RI

• Providence Career and Technical Academy

Providence, RI

Tennessee

• Ivy Academy

Soddy-Daisy, TN

• Lipscomb Academy Elementary School

Nashville, TN

Vermont

• Reading Elementary School

Reading, VT

• St. Albans City School

St. Albans, VT

• Shelburne Community School

Shelburne, VT

Virginia

• Stony Point Elementary School

Keswick, VA

• Magna Vista High School

Ridgeway, VA

Washington

• Glacier Park Elementary School     

Maple Valley, WA

• Sacajawea Elementary School

Vancouver, WA

• Tahoma Senior High School

Covington, WA

• The Evergreen School

Shoreline, WA

• Kent School District

West Virginia

• Hometown Elementary School

Red House, WV

• Petersburg Elementary School

Petersburg, WV

• Marshall County Schools

Wisconsin

• Summit Environmental School

La Crosse, WI

• Westlawn Elementary School

Cedarburg, WI

• Jefferson Elementary-Fox River Academy

Appleton, WI

• Racine Montessori School

Racine, WI

• School District of Fort Atkinson