Northland Pines School District Achieves Sustainability Honors

As a part of Earth Week, The US Department of Education announced the recipients of their Green Ribbon Schools and sustainability awards. Among those recognized was Eagle River’s Northland Pines School District.

Just 41 schools, ten school districts, and three colleges were honored across the nation. Criteria used for determining those who were nominated for the award included innovative efforts to improve health and wellness, reduce environmental impact and utility costs, and offer effective sustainability education. Northland Pines was nominated by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, for the measure they took to implement the use of solar power generation on each campus, conversion to LED lights, efficiency fixtures, green cleaning products and and the use of several electric buses in their fleet.

Of the 54 total institutions recognized nationally, 5 are from Wisconsin, including:

· Madison – Creative Learning Preschool and Child Care Center
· Milwaukee – Hawthorne Elementary School
· Bay View – Milwaukee Parkside School for the Arts
· University of Wisconsin-Stout

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona spoke highly of the recipients, saying “These awards represent thousands of students, and countless hours of hard work in schools and on college campuses, ensuring equitable access to healthy, climate-resilient learning environments where students are prepared for the sustainability challenges of the present and future.”