The conference consisted of a panel discussion hosted by Rachel Gutter, director of the Center for Green Schools. Harvey Bernstein, vice president, industry insights and alliances, McGraw-Hill Construction presented a preview of a report his firm is in the process of completing, called the New & Retrofit Green School study. The full study will be released in the first quarter of 2013 as part of McGraw-Hill’s Smartmarket Report series.

The panel was rounded out by Jessica Hubbard, director, corporate social responsibility, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and Irene Nigaglioni, chair, Council of Educational Facility Planners International and partner at PBK Architects.

The presenters all emphasized that green building had taken a sharp turn recently in the educational market, changing from a luxury that could only be considered by well-off schools, to a standard. Hubbard said many people in the industry viewed green as a niche market until research started to suggest that green building designs had an array of positive impacts on the classroom experience for teachers and students. She explained this was a real eye opener and a watershed moment, when green stopped seeming like a cultural movement and changed into a strategic solution for improving outcomes and health in the classroom.

Bernstein cited several interesting and surprising results that would be included in the upcoming McGraw-Hill report. He explained that schools with green features saw a 32-percent reduction in absenteeism and a 68-percent increase in the quality of test scores. He added that higher educational facilities have seen a 40-percent increase in test performance when adding green designs to their campus. He explained these findings were shocking enough to be taken very seriously, but cautioned that data for these studies only went back to 2007.

Hubbard said one explanation for the results was that air circulation had been linked very directly to classroom outcomes. She said facilities with limited airflow caused students and teachers to feel more lethargic and experience difficulties concentrating.

Nigaglioni explained the next big step for schools would be to find ways to work their green facilities into the curriculum and educate students about the science behind the technology in their classrooms.

Gutter said colleges were beginning to find the recruiting benefits of green building. She explained that a recent survey found 69 percent of high school students considered the green aspects of a campus when deciding where to apply for college.

Bernstein brought the conversation full circle, explaining he had two sons, one an engineer and one an architect, who already saw the world differently than he does. He said the next generation of designers viewed green as the standard, the only way to build and that the world would turn in that direction as well, when parents retire and hand it over to their children.

The post Panel Educates Greenbuild Attendees on Benefits of Green Schools appeared first on 91视频.

The post Panel Educates Greenbuild Attendees on Benefits of Green Schools appeared first on 91视频.

The program has already proven successful on the West Coast as four major Seattle sports teams signed on to volunteer their time for the effort. The Mariners, Seahawks, Sounders and Storm all participated in school projects in the run up to the big day, hoping to prompt sports teams in other regions to follow suite.

Irvine, Calif. firm LPA Inc. designed the new classroom at Davis Magnet. The retrofitted classroom was redesigned to take advantage of natural daylight, and features a new ventilation system, after tests found the previous setup was highly inefficient. All materials from paint to flooring have been replaced with sustainable and/or recyclable materials. Monitoring equipment will allow students to see the difference between how much power is consumed when the lights are turned on or off when the room is left empty, or depending on how much the air conditioner is used. The system will also measure the output of the adjacent “normal” classroom, so students can see the difference in energy consumption and cost to the school.

Wendy Rogers, chair of the USGBC’s Orange County Green Schools Committee and a design principal at LPA, explained she saw the project as an improvement from multiple perspectives, as a parent and a professional architect.

“As a mother of two, and someone who designs K-12 schools for a living, I understand the challenges and dwindling budgets our schools are facing. I also know that with 55 million Americans spending six hours a day (or more) in school facilities, we must do a better job creating positive educational environments. Outdated buildings, with little access to daylight, outdated fixtures, and poor ventilation, do little to prepare today’s learners for the future.”

The renovation work was supplied at zero cost to the school, as in-kind donations from various private entities funded everything. LPA gave financial support and its designers’ time, while Disney, McCarthy Building Companies, and Sunbelt Controls also donated time, materials and/or funding.

The school’s principal, Dr. Kevin Rafferty, was thrilled with the project. “To involve two of our classrooms, where we’ll have a controlled classroom and an experimental classroom, and all of the measurements, and data, and information that’s produced — will not only benefit the scientific researchers, but also be fully available to us, as teachers and students, here at the school. The kids will be able to analyze the data, work with it, and look for differences, trends, and patterns. It will be much more meaningful because it’s happening here, and they’re involved with it.”

The school is already considered way ahead of the curve in terms of green immersion, as students participate in recycling, composting, and growing their own food in an instructional garden.

The post Classroom Retrofit Honors Green Apple Day appeared first on 91视频.

The post Classroom Retrofit Honors Green Apple Day appeared first on 91视频.