Duncan Praises Honorees: Announces 2nd Annual Green Strides Best Practices Tour

For the third consecutive year, U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools and Districts Sustainability Awards received accolades at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. for their sustainable, healthy facilities, wellness practices and sustainability learning. In addition to the ceremony, honorees participated in a celebration offered by the Center for Green schools and Senator Tom Harkin’s office, where they met their Congressional representatives, and in a range of tours offered by numerous federal partners. To learn more about this year’s U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools and District Sustainability Awardees, visit our website.

…And Announces Second Annual Green Strides Best Practices Tour
Federal, state and local officials will be traveling to a select number of U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools and District Sustainability Awardees as part of the second annual Green Strides Best Practices Tour, hosted by state education agencies.  This year's tour, with the theme "Healthy Schools, High-Achieving Students" will visit West Virginia, Kentucky, Florida, Colorado, Minnesota, and Maryland.  The tour is open to the public and press.  It is a great opportunity to learn from and share with ED-GRS honorees.

The dates of the tour are:
August 18th -22nd: West Virginia and Kentucky
Sept. 4th-5th: South Florida
Sept. 16th -17th: Denver and Ft. Collins, Colorado
Sept. 23rd-24th: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Oct. 8th: Maryland

Featured

  • Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Agricultural Sciences Complex

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The College of Western Idaho's Agricultural Sciences Complex has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.

  • Texas Recruitment

    Texas Recruitment

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The University of Texas at Austin's Texas Recruitment has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of Renovation.

  • Deferred Maintenance Issues Growing at Universities, Gordian Reports

    U.S. colleges and universities are falling increasingly behind on facilities maintenance and repair, according to Gordian’s 13th annual State of Facilities in Higher Education report. The deferred capital renewal burden has reached $156 per gross square foot, an 8% increase over the previous year.

  • Virginia Tech Tops Out New College of Engineering Building

    Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., recently celebrated the topping out of Mitchell Hall, which will soon stand as the largest College of Engineering building on campus, according to a news release. The university partnered with Skanska on the 285,500-square-foot facility, which has an expected completion date of winter 2028.