'Green Ribbon' Bedwell, Bernards High Schools on Feds' Tour

Two Somerset Hills schools awarded a national "Green Ribbon" for environmental and energy saving practices are on the U.S. Department of Education's short list for representatives' “Education Built to Last, Facilities Best Practices Tour” this month.

The federal DOE will visit only a few Green Ribbon Schools throughout the country on the tour, according to information from the Somerset Hills School District. Representatives from the U.S. and N.J. Departments of Education are scheduled to come to the Bedwell Elementary School and Bernards High School in Bernardsville on August 13 for a tour and discussion on best practices.

In April, the Bedwell Elementary School was among only 64 schools in the nation to be named as a U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School. 

The New Jersey Department of Education also announced last February that Bedwell was one of only two school buildings in the state to be recognized as a 2013 New Jersey Green Ribbon School.

The previous year, in 2012, Bernards High School was selected among 78 schools in the U.S. for this impressive award, and also had been cited by the state.

The selected schools are honored for efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, promote better health, and ensure effective environmental education, including civics and green career pathways.

For example, as part of the green initiative, the district, as a whole, has participated in a grant-funded Comprehensive Energy Audit, an Energy Savings Improvement Program (ESIP), the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Pay for Performance (P4P) program, North American Power Partner Partners Demand Response Program and the Schools for Energy Efficiency (SEE) Program, O'Brien said.

The district also instituted a board-approved energy policy aimed at reducing energy waste and increasing awareness of environmental concerns within the buildings.

Solar panels installed at Bedwell

Solar panels had been installed on the roof of the Bedwell School last summer, according to information from the school district.