Schools

Fulton School Revels in Silver for Going Green

District 146's newest school is proud of its high-profile LEED certification for being environmentally friendly.

With the school year well under way, students at District 146's Fulton Elementary School are probably more worried about getting gold stars than Silver Certification.

Luckily, the district did take that into account. And, although his daily concerns are on the students roaming the halls, Principal Ron Gonser is proud those halls are environmentally friendly.

"It's great to work in a school that's gotten this honor," he said.

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The honor he's referring to is LEED Silver Certification for schools, the third highest ranking for schools in terms of environmental friendliness. This makes the new Fulton, which opened in August 2009 on the site of the old Fulton School, one of only 12 schools in the state to get Silver or higher.

From its beginning, the new, 62,000-square-foot, 550-student Fulton School had an environmental bent, incorporating many materials from the former building, which was built in 1958.

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"The old Fulton, when it was torn down, all the materials that could be recycled were recycled," Gonser said.

LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a certification by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council verifying a building was built with environmental standards in mind.

"School District 146 committed to construct a school that contributes to a healthy and enhanced learning environment for students, teachers and staff," lead architect Ron Giles of DLA Architects, Ltd. said in a written statement. "The design integrates a variety of environmentally friendly components, and we are so pleased the U.S. Green Building Council recognized this."

Environmentally friendly features are throughout the school, Gonser said.

Rather than having boilers keeping water hot at all times, the cold water heating system warms water as needed. Lights are on motion sensors to switch off in case a teacher accidentally leaves a light on overnight. The windows are tinted and paned to keep the building insulated.

And more schools are following Fulton's example.

In June, when District 146 first announced the honor, it was only one of four schools in the state to get Silver or higher certification. By this week, it was one of 12.

The building went beyond green design, adding features designed to encourage green behavior. There are special parking spots for carpoolers and a staff shower so teachers can walk or bike to school without worrying about starting the day sweaty, Gonser said.


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