Alfonza W. Davis Middle School in Omaha has been named a 2016 US Department of Education Green Ribbon School’s Sustainability Award Recipient.
Dan Bartels, Principal of Davis Middle School, says they filled out a rigorous 17-page application to apply for the honor.
Bartels says this is the third year that Davis Middle School has applied. He says the school, which opened in 2013 is a LEED-Certified Silver Building.
Bartels says the Sustainability Award doesn’t just encompass the way the building was built but also environmentally-friendly initiatives in place at the school including their recycling program.
He says this was the first year the school made it to the state level. The state nominated the school for the national award.
"A lot of the way we were built was based on recycled materials and things like that. To have that recognition for our new school, for our families, our parents, our students, our stakeholders, it’s an awesome privilege to represent our district but also to be a school open three years to get this award.”
Bartels says this is a lifetime award, so once a school receives it, they can’t get it again. Principal Bartels and another staff member will go to Washington DC this summer to pick up the award.
Davis Middle School is one of only 47 schools receiving the US Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools’ Sustainability Award.