1.3 Sustainable schools

1.3.1 School-Wide Environmental Behavior Changes

ADVANCED ADAPTIVE LIGHTING

In addition to benefiting from abundant natural lighting through large, east-facing windows in each classroom, the lighting systems were designed to adjust to the amount of natural light available, dimming the already efficient LEDs when natural light is available.

Additionally, all lights in the building use timers which turn the lights off when the room is unoccupied.

Water savings

All of the fixtures at St. Margaret's Day school are low flow fixtures, including faucets on timers in all the restrooms. Additionally, St. Margaret's Day School uses rain barrels on all buildings in order to collect rainwater for use to water native shrubs planted on the grounds. We also have a rain barrel on the playground that is accessible to the children at all times. This allows them to take the initiative and water the plants as it is needed. 

100% Green Energy

St. Margaret's Church and St. Margaret's Day School have made a powerful,lasting commitment to sustainable development and continuing environmental stewardship through a green energy contract. The St. Margaret's Church campus and school building are under contract to use 100% wind power energy offsets. When the contract concludes in 2019, the Church Vestry will most likely renew the green energy contract. The contract is not releasable due to a confidentiality clause, but we would be happy to provide additional details upon request.

MArker and crayon recycling

During the 2018-2019 school year we began recycling our markers and crayons. We are apart of Crayola's Color Cycle program.  So far we have been able to recycle 1,100 markers. That's over 22 lbs of markers that would otherwise end up in landfills! The children are responsible for bringing the old markers to our collection bin and they also help count and package our markers when it is time to ship them off. 

To recycle our used crayons we have partnered with the a local title one school in Annapolis. We take our crayons to their school for them to use. This cuts down on crayon waste and also provides the crayons with a new purpose for other children. The children at SMDS are responsible for bringing the old crayons to our collection bin and they also help count and package our crayons when it is time to ship them off. ​

Commitment to green cleaning

We have done our research and have made a significant change to our cleaning processes. For most cleaning applications, SMDS uses homemade cleaners from natural ingredients, such as vinegar, Castile soap, and tea tree oil. We have eliminated paper waste for routine cleaning, reusing durable and washable microfiber clothes in place of disposable paper towels. For cleaning applications where these aren't sufficient, SMDS purchases Green Seal Certified cleaners.

Our hired cleaning service uses only Green Seal certified cleaning products, noted in the contract below.
SMDS Green Cleaning.pdf
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reduction of paper usage

Most of the communication among teachers and staff is done electronically. Each classroom uses Macbook Air computers for lesson plans and activity logs.

​We now use an app called Kaymbu to communicate with the families. All pictures, weekly newsletters, calendars, special events, and weekly progress reports are provided to the families through this app. 

Correspondence between the director and the student families is done primarily by e-mail, and our after-care tracking system has been converted from paper cards to electronic format through Punchpass beginning in 2015.

Our room parents use Sign Up Genius(an online platform) to organize parties and events in order to eliminate paper waste. 

reduction of plastic usage

Beginning in the 2018 school year, we began providing all children with water bottles. These water bottles are used throughout the entire day and are refilled as needed. Our 2s and 3s classes have metal water bottles, while our 4s classes, Pre-K, and K classes have plastic water bottles. This has cut down on our plastic cups being used during snack time significantly. Also in the 2018 school year we began a plastic bag recycling initiative. When students brought in 50 plastic grocery bags, they would receive a reusable SMDS tote bag. If students and their families were already using reusable bags when grocery shopping, for every 10 receipts they brought in to show this, they would receive a reusable SMDS tote bag. Last school year we were able to properly recycle over 5,000 plastic bags! 

Pesticide Free campus

SMDS uses a strictly green process (requiring no EPA controls) for management and control of insects. We believe in teaching our students by setting a great example. We love learning about insects and their benefits, and have the ability to demonstrate that we can control pests in an environmentally responsible way.
SMDS Pest Control.pdf
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Objective 1.3.2 Systemic partnership

Partnering together, the St. Margaret's Church and school community were able to create an electronics recycling program. Our first collection was for America Recycles Day the week of November 10th-15th. Between the two collection sites we were able to properly recycle over 40 lbs of old electronics! The Kindergarten students helped design the posters for our collection sites. We will have a spring electronic collection as well in the month of April. 


Objective 1.4 Celebration
Systemic Sustainability
Student-Driven Sustainability Practices
Community Partnerships, Awards, and Special Recognition