February 9, 2024: Massachusetts K-12 Schools Embracing Sustainability
The Massachusetts School Building Authority conducted a Spotlight on Schools training for the Office of the Inspector General’s OIG Academy, on Friday, February 9, 2024. The training introduced information to the approximately 60 attendees about how school districts building new schools are leading the way to meet the Commonwealth’s climate goals.
Session 1:
A growing number of school districts are opting to build schools that operate without fossil fuels or vastly reduced reliance on fossil fuels. There are currently 9 MSBA schools that operate “all-electric”. Out of the 9, a total of 7 schools operate fully electric, and 2 schools only use fossil fuel for emergency boilers. There are another 19 MSBA schools in design or construction that will operate without any or with reduced reliance on fossil fuels. School districts are choosing sustainable systems and methods to operate school buildings. MSBA Executive Director, Mary Pichetti, introduced and moderated the Spotlight on Schools segment. She welcomed a series of presenters, including municipal facilities managers and architects who shared their knowledge and experiences with design and operation of Net Zero school buildings in Massachusetts and provided valuable advice to attendees.
Kate Bubriski, Principal and Director of Sustainability at Arrowstreet Design began the program with a brief introduction into the terminology and definitions used to describe sustainable building construction, including Net Zero Energy, Net Zero Ready, and Net Zero Positive. She articulated cost savings and rising global temperatures as important considerations for designing sustainable systems in new buildings. Kate indicated that new federal and state subsidies help to offset the higher upfront costs for these types of systems and opined that the long-term expected cost savings to operate buildings with sustainable systems makes it hard to ignore the benefits.
As the Director of Construction for the City of Cambridge, Brendon Roy described his experiences building three new all-electric school buildings, including the MLK Jr. School (2015), the King Open/Cambridge Street Upper Schools (2019), and the Tobin Montessori and Vassal Lane Upper Schools (est. 2025). In his presentation, Brendon shared that Cambridge has embraced the concept of net zero energy use, that is, energy reduction and on-site energy production in its new buildings. He described the use of geothermal wells to offset reliance on fossil fuel and behavioral adjustments to reduce energy. To produce energy for the buildings he described the use of solar panels. Both components are important to achieve a Net Zero status for building operations. Brendon reported that the calibration of the systems is a challenge requiring a hard-to-find skillset. He stated that the novelty of the technology and the sophistication of the methods for data interpretation for optimal operation warrants the City’s initial reliance on specialty consultants and commissioning agents for the operation and maintenance of these new energy systems.
Joined by school architect, Kate Bubriski, Kate Crosby, the Energy Manager for the Acton-Boxborough Regional School District, described her experiences in building and operating the new Net Zero-ready Boardwalk Campus (2022), which includes both the Douglas and Gates Elementary Schools. Kate explained that at the outset of the sustainable building project, it is imperative to identify the target Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of a (school) building. The calculation of EUI is done on projects with ambitious sustainability goals. Factors impacting EUI include occupant thermal comfort, building orientation, and decisions related to mechanical and electric systems as well as insulation, glazing and appliances and equipment. Kate reiterated the importance of sustainability consultants to assist with determining an EUI as well as the expertise of commissioning consultants for assistance in operations after the building has been completed.
Bobby Williams, Associate Principal with HMFH Architects, and Derek Costa, Superintendent of Bristol County Agricultural High School, expanded on the topic of sustainable energy systems by sharing their own experiences in constructing the Net Zero-ready school buildings of their “Green School of the Year” award-winning campus project, completed in 2021. The duo shared a series of sustainable features of the new buildings on campus that contribute to the school’s efficiency, including water conservation and reuse strategies, utilization of heavy timber structures to sequester carbon, and inclusion of low-maintenance outdoor learning and gathering spaces.
In a brief presentation, Gary Brock, Sustainability Leader and Associate at HMFH Architects, summarized the ways that the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) can help offset costs for school districts embarking on their journey of building a sustainable school. He explained the IRA’s process which offers tax credits for incorporating sustainable technologies in a building project, such as ground source heat pumps, photovoltaic systems, electric charging stations, batteries, small wind turbines, and fuel cells. Gary also demonstrated the beneficial impact on construction cost for an elementary school in Massachusetts that elects to participate in the IRA tax credit program and the MassSave rebate program. Rounding out the MSBA’s morning content, Mary Pichetti described the pilot program that the MSBA is pursuing with HMFH architects to outfit the interior of Bristol Plymouth Regional Technical School with healthy furniture and materials. The results of the pilot to date, indicate that healthy building materials and furniture products which are free of harmful chemicals are readily available to procure in the marketplace. Mary introduced Tina Stanislaski, Principal with HMFH Architects, who was joined by her colleagues Bobby Williams and Gary Brock to review how schools can earn LEED and NE-CHPS points (as well as additional MSBA dollar incentives) by opting for healthier building construction materials and furniture in their new MSBA schools. The HMFH team’s presentation detailed the growing popularity and availability of healthier options for building construction materials, explaining their relevance in terms of user safety and health. Tina, Bobby, and Gary also highlighted “Easy Win” third-party certified material and product categories, including ceiling tiles, acoustical room components, spray fireproofing, flooring, tile, and furniture. Their presentation concluded with a recommendation to purchase these “Easy Win” products from accessible cooperative contracts, such as that of the MSBA's Collaborative Procurement Program (C.P.P.) , MHEC, and the Operational Services Division (OSD).
Session 2:
Concluding the day, Erin Powers, Systems and Policy Trainer with the Operational Services Division (OSD), continued the theme of healthy materials in her presentation on Environmentally Preferred Products (EPP) and their availability through OSD statewide contracts. Explaining the wide variety of EPPs available through existing contracts such as OFF38 for office, school, and library furniture, Erin underscored the accessibility and ease-of-use for districts and municipalities opting for these healthier options in their new school buildings.
Overview and Materials
