2017 Green Ribbon Schools Honored

Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Education has announced the recipients of the 2017 U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools (ED-GRS), an awards program that acknowledges a deep commitment to sustainable practices among the nation’s leading schools, districts and institutions of higher education. 

A total of 63 honorees — including 45 schools, nine post-secondary institutions and nine school districts — received the prestigious award for their demonstrated leadership across three pillars:

  • Reduced environmental impact and costs,
  • Improved health and wellness and
  • Effective environmental and sustainability education. 

Now in its sixth year, the program has honored 340 schools, 56 districts and 34 postsecondary institutions.

As part of this significant recognition program within the green schools movement, recipients of this year’s award model best practices for educating and inspiring the next generation of 21st century citizens. Showing the breadth of the green schools movement, 44 percent of this year’s awardees serve under-resourced communities, and 14 percent are in rural areas. Charter, non-public and magnet schools are included, as well as career, technical and community colleges.

Each participating state in this voluntary program is allowed to nominate up to four schools and one district that demonstrate a comprehensive approach to sustainability. This year’s pool of candidates were nominated and reviewed by 29 state education authority implementation teams, including 28 states and the Department of Defense Education Activity.

The green schools movement has grown broader and deeper since 2011, when key advocates, including the U.S. Green Building Council’s Center for Green Schools, steered some 80 national and state-based nonprofits to request that the U.S. Department of Education honor schools for their sustainability efforts and contributions.

To view a list of the winners, visit www.proudgreenbuilding.com.

Featured

  • Greenheck Launches Optics Sensors for Kitchen Hoods

    Greenheck recently announced the launch of factory-installed optics sensors as an enhanced option for its kitchen ventilation hoods, according to a news release.

  • Spaces4Learning Launches 2025 New Product Awards

    Spaces4Learning is now accepting entries for the 2025 New Product Awards! The program’s goal is to honor the outstanding product development achievements of manufacturers and suppliers whose products and services are particularly noteworthy in helping to improve K–12 and Higher Education learning environments.

  • Tennant Company Launches Autonomous Floor Scrubber

    Cleaning equipment and solutions provider Tennant Company recently launched the new X6 ROVR, a mid-sized robotic scrubber designed for large commercial and light-industrial environments, according to a news release. The autonomous machine can clean up to 75,000 square feet peer cycle with minimal needs for manual assistance.

  • Texas A&M Adds ALPR Technology to Parking Solutions

    Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, recently integrated automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) technology into its parking services and enforcement strategies, according to a news release. The university’s Transportation Services division deployed Genetec AutoVu ALPR to manage the campus’ 36,000+ parking spaces.

Digital Edition