By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Grand Rapids Public Schools’ Sibley Elementary recently received LEED-NC certification for the new school building which opened its doors last fall. The school also reports improved student attendance, falls in line with the findings of a recent national study titled Greening America’s Schools Costs and Benefits.
The study reports ‘green’ schools that provide good lighting, including daylight, have improved test scores and increased student attendance, and improved air quality means less teacher absenteeism due to illness.
Principal MaryAnn Prisichenko says those results are holding true in Sibley’s new LEED building.
“We’ve had the highest number of kindergarteners reading above grade level in years and our attendance is at an all-time high,” Prisichenko notes with pride. “The number of children who have missed more than 12 days has significantly decreased.”
Jeff Remtema of Progressive AE was responsible for the LEED administration of the project.
“There’s a lot of glass in the right places in the building, providing views and bringing daylight into the classrooms,” Remtema notes. “The national study shows there are high correlations between improved daylighting and test scores, reduced behavioral problems and even a reduction of dental cavities. That last one really threw people off. No one is sure why that has happened, whether it’s behavioral or something else.”
Construction involved extra measures to improve indoor air quality with low-VOC materials, mold prevention and air circulation. Crews ran the ventilation system at 100 percent capacity for the two weeks prior to opening the doors to students last fall.
“This brand new building is a nice place for kids to come and learn,” says Prisichenko. “We know we still have a lot of work to do, but the optimism from the staff and students is there.”
Source: MaryAnn Prisichenko, Sibley Elementary; Jeff Remtema, Progressive AE
Photograph by Mark Thomas
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Deborah Johnson Wood is the development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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