On March 8, the PAISBOA Sustainability Group hosted a virtual panel discussion: “Leading Change: Environmental Sustainability at Your School.” Panelists included Lisa Carbone Warren, Director of Finance & Operations at Moorestown Friends School (MFS), and Carolyn Hapeman, Dean of Finance & Operations at Westtown School and Mary Ann Boyer of Boyer Sudduth Environmental Consultants.
PAISBOA’s Operations Manager, Ron Hill, kicked off the meeting followed by Mary Ann Boyer who provided a sustainability overview and referenced some of the findings of PAISBOA’s Sustainability Benchmarking Survey. Boyer noted that environmental sustainability is a critical global issue. “It’s an issue that students, families and school communities care about,” she added. “And it’s a factor that keeps K-12 grade schools competitive.” According to the 2022 Princeton Review, “78% of 11,133 college applicants said having information about a college’s commitment to the environment would affect their decision to apply to that school.”
Both MFS’s Lisa Carbone Warren and Westtown’s Carolyn Hapeman shared their own schools’ experiences with the process. When asked why their respective schools are pursuing environmental sustainability, Carbone Warren reflected, “We are committed to ensuring that our students understand the central role they play in conserving resources, living simply, and leading responsibly at a time when our planet is at risk.”
Hapeman added, “A three divisional school requires thoughtful work. We’re in the process of reviewing our curriculum. One important piece of this work–along with math, English, and history–is adding sustainability to our curricular mapping so that there is an overarching trajectory in our students’ education.”
The panelists then shared concrete examples of their sustainability projects, programs, and initiatives, as well as the challenges they have faced along the way.
MFS students observe an active on-campus beehive.
While MFS is in the process of building a multi-year Sustainability Plan, the school has already launched and completed many sustainability projects to date, including the use of green cleaning supplies, the replacement of over 700 lightbulbs with LEDs, and the installation of a natural playscape.
Westtown’s Facilities Team displays its electric grounds equipment.
Westtown’s Sustainability Master Plan was approved in 2016; the school is currently rolling out sustainability initiatives with the guidance of its three-division, faculty-and-staff-comprised Sustainability Committee. Westtown’s large acreage has prompted many land-related projects, including the placement of 49 acres under conservation easement in 2021, and the installation of a 7 acre solar array, which will provide 91% of the campus’s electricity in December 2023. Other sustainability initiatives include an annual student clothing swap and the attainment of Green Ribbon School status.
A recording of the virtual panel discussion can be found here. Our next PAISBOA Sustainability meeting will be in person at Haverford College on April 26, 2023 from 5:15 - 7:30 pm. Stay tuned for more details. To register, contact admin@PAISBOA.org.
PAISBOA and Boyer Sudduth Environmental Consultants coordinate the Sustainability Group, a network of environmental sustainability champions from independent schools. The group gathers three times a year at member schools, tours "green" campuses, and over dinner discusses a specific sustainability topic. Participants range from faculty, administrators, and staff -- folks who are passionate about promoting sustainability within their school. We welcome new members.
Article by Sophia Haegley, Sustainability Intern at Boyer Sudduth Environmental Consultants, University of Pennsylvania ‘22.
Printed in PAISBOA’s Friday Flyer Vol. XII, No. 4 - March 17, 2023.
