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Grand Rapids Public Schools win award for environmental commitment

The West Michigan chapter of the US Green Building Council named GRPS as the Green Schools Champion Award winner.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Energy savings weren't a huge concern Wednesday afternoon. The mild, spring-like temperatures filled the air giving heaters across West Michigan a break. But when the cold returns, or the hot temperatures of the summer months, Grand Rapids Public Schools will be ready.

The district was recently named the Green Schools Champion Award winner by the West Michigan chapter of the US Green Building Council. The designation is given to organizations whose facilities are highly energy efficient and cost effective.

"For us, this means a lot because we were one of the first school districts in Michigan to develop LEED Certified Green Build school buildings thanks to the 2004 bond that was approved by the Grand Rapids taxpayers," said the GRPS Executive Director of Communications, John Helmholdt.

"In the long run, this is for the benefit and the betterment of our taxpayer dollars. We're creating high quality green environments for students, teachers and staff. But it's also saving taxpayers money in the long run, because of the energy and water efficiency."

Twelve of the districts 44 buildings are Green Build LEED Certified. They include Harrison Park, Blandford, Burton Elementary-Middle School, Cesar Chavez Elementary, Dickinson Academy, Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Academy, Sibley Elementary, the Gerald R. Ford Academic Center, the Grand Rapids Public Museum High School, Ottawa Hills High School, Southwest Middle-High School and Buchanan Elementary.

"We also have a partnership with the Grand Rapids Environmental Education Network where we're incorporating grade level outdoor learning, and activating school yards for outdoor learning, doing field trips to like Blanford Nature Center, to Lake Michigan, and other things like that," Helmholdt said.

"So, it's a holistic approach toward environmental education and environmental design. So our buildings themselves can actually be something the students can learn from, based on the LEED standards that we've implemented," he said.

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