Minnesota Schools Cutting Carbon

Cooling our Heels

This report will chart the progress on our MSCC project since our last report filed in June 2010. Significant progress has been made on several objectives. The most exciting news is that the school had a 10% reduction in total energy use during the first 3 quarters of 2010. Other noteworthy improvements include the installation of motion-activated light sensors, vending misers and weather stripping on doors. Paper use has decreased as faculty training and use of Moodle online curriculum has increased. The Irish Green Team is has been invited to present at the CERT Clean Energy Conference this Feb. 3rd. A more look detailed examination of our progress on each objective follows.

Our first objective was to educate the school of our current carbon footprint and our goal for reducing it. The carbon footprint posters made by the art honor society continue to grace our hallways. The school’s carbon cutting efforts were featured in an Oct. 2010 article entitled “Light on their Feet” in the Minnesota Parent Magazine. All 9th graders will complete an energy unit this winter that will include the Minnesota Energy Challenge where students determine their own carbon footprint and ways to reduce it. The school is still ranked as the top team in the Minnesota Energy Challenge, with 279 members pledging to save 2.8 million pounds of carbon dioxide with a financial savings of over $175,000.

The second objective was to develop and implement a new energy unit in 9th grade Earth Science. In 2009 – 2010 students did research, gathered data, evaluated the data and formulated an action plan to reduce the carbon footprint of RHS. The tools used to collect the data on energy use and lighting were also made available for students to check out to determine ways to save energy in their homes. New developments since June on this objective:
• Task C – shared the school’s action plan via the MSCC page and presented to the faculty at a fall preschool workshop
• Task D – SEE squad continues to monitor classrooms and provide data on rooms where lights are left on.
• Task E – After much discussion, weather stripping was purchased and the school custodians have been installing it where needed as time permits. Motion-activated sensors have been installed in 3 lecture rooms and the faculty resource room.
• Task F -Math teachers have not used our energy meters yet. The statistics teacher did use our data with his class.
• Task G – The Earth Science classes in the 2010-2011 school year will include an Energy unit in which the work of the previous students in shared, more data is gathered and analyzed using the meters, changes are documented and more PR is written for the behavior changes sought. This will occur later this winter following a unit on Earth’s mineral and rock resources.
• Each month a new “Action of the Month” is shared with students and staff via school announcements. (See the Actions of the Month.pdf)

The success of this objective is evident with the School for Energy Efficiency data. SEE data for year two shows the school is on the right path with 2009 electricity use down 3.2% and natural gas use down 8.5% when compared to the baseline data. So far, data for Quarters 1, 2, and 3 of 2010 show a 10% reduction in overall energy use so we are very close to our project goal of %11.

Our third objective was to decrease the number of cars driven to and from school by 10% by encouraging students to ride the bus, carpool, bike or walk to school. The objective had mixed success. We did not achieve the 10% reduction in cars but did hold two “Walk with Principal Wollerhsheim” events on May 20 and again on Oct. 6th 2010. Mayor Droste joined us on International Walk to School Day in Oct. The local Dairy Queen provided tokens for free ice cream cones for our walkers and the Rosemount Police department monitored busy intersections. We will continue to work with the school and the Dakota County Safe Routes program to encourage healthy biking and walking to school with a May bike/walk event and other actions as funds allow. Reductions in funding for schools has resulted in the loss of activity busses this year so students who are participating in any of our after school extra curricular activities must provide their own transportation resulting in additional student drivers.

Our fourth objective was to reduce the amount of paper printed by 10% or 456,340 sheets of paper through teacher training and monitoring the amount of paper printed by students with “Papercut” software. The library aid reports that paper use is down in the IMC but does not have hard data. We have Papercut software data on paper use for trimester one but do not have old data to compare it to for the library and computer labs. The faculty/staff resources paper use data shows a reduction of 149,574 copies during trimester one of 2010 compared to trimester 1 of 2009 which is an 8% reduction in paper. The totals for 2010 also include some T2 copying so the reduction is somewhat better than the data suggests. If we continue to use less paper we should be able to meet our goal of a 456, 340 sheet reduction for the year. The administration has supported this goal by requiring teachers to use Moodle for their classes and to attend training sessions in Moodle. Moodle allows teachers to post work online for students rather than printing copies.

Overall progress on “Cooling our Heels” has been steady and on schedule. The “Month by Month Project Schedule/Budget below has been updated to reflect funds that have been used and tasks that have been completed as of June 2010 in red and as of Jan. 2011 in green. All grant purchases have now been made. An electrician has donated his time to install the motion-activated light sensors and completed over half the work to date. The custodians are working on weather stripping the doors a few at a time as time allows with their limited staff but are making progress. Additional energy and paper use data will be shared as it becomes available.

MONTH BY MONTH PROJECT SCHEDULE/BUDGET Each task is listed with Objective number, task letter and action number. For example 1.A.1 = Objective 1, task A, subtask or action 1

Date Task Completion Budget
Actual
Jan 2010 Grant notification 0% $0
Feb 2010 Obj 1: Educate-carbon footprint
1.A.1.2.3. Interviews with papers
1.B.1.2.3. Poster designed, printed
Completed 5%

Posters $10 ea x 20 = $200
$196.80
Feb 2010 Obj. 2: Energy Unit
2.A.1. Order supplies

6% 10 light meters
$60 × 10= $600
10 Kill A Watt
$42 × 10= $420
10 Non-contact infrared Thermometers
$45 × 10 = $450
$1113.50
10 cord locks
budget $1500 sensors
Purchased 8 power pack $218.05
Purchased 13 sensors $1652.66
Total = $1870.71
Installed in 4 Rooms,
3 more to do still (no charge)
3 Energy Misers
$150 × 3 = $450
$463.48
60 power strips for teachers
$15 × 60 = $900
$840.21
16 LCD monitors
$200 × 16 = $3200
$3230
Feb 2010 Obj. 4: 10% paper reduction
Obj.4.B.C Order and install Papercut software, monitor student paper use through end of school year
Installation complete

8%
Papercut software
$1200
$1170
March 2010 Obj.2.A.3.Lessons designed
Obj.1.B.3 Carbon Posters hung
Completed
10% $0
April 2010 Obj.2.A.4. study zones set up/used for classes
Obj.2.B.1.2.3.4.Students research, collect data, analyze data, form action plans by end of month
Obj.2.A.5 teachers supervise energy data gathered, interpreted by students
Completed

25% $0
April 2010 Obj. 3: Reduce student cars by 10%
Obj.3C. Contact RST police
Obj.3.A.Irish Green finds local sponsor
Obj.3.B. Irish Green makes posters publicizes walk/bike/carpool/bus day
Spring walk day completed, will repeat in Oct.
Obj.4.A. Teacher workshops held
Completed

35% $0

Substitutes paid
29 substitutes x $104 ea =
$3016
$2800
May 2010 Obj.2.B.5. Student present action plans
Obj.2.B.6 Students check out tools to do energy audit of house for extra credit
Obj.3.C. Bike/walk day held
Obj.2.A.6. Action plans evaluated and presented to admin by end of month Completed

40% $0
June 2010 Obj.2.B.7. Data and plans shared online
Obj.2.C.1. Mn School Carbon page and RHS web updated with action plan
Obj.2.C.2. Nine “Actions of the Month” selected
Obj.2.E.1.Administrators evaluate action plans
Completed

45% $0

June 2010 Obj.4. 10% Paper Reduction
Obj.4.C Papercut data on student use evaluated to determine if limits need to be set

50%
July – Aug 2010 Obj.2.E.2.Administrators direct work of custodians to improve efficiency and conserve energy

12/23/10 Completed

55% $284 for caulking, weather stripping, and insulation
$250 Xcel rebate from sensors used for this too
Still working on details of how to get this done
$ 575.48 Weather stripping
Will apply for Excel rebate on sensors after all installed
Week 1 Sept 2010 Obj.2.E.3.Action plan shared with staff at Preschool workshop
Completed 60%
Sept. Obj.2.G.1. ES classes write PSA’s to support action plan
Obj.3.A. Local sponsor sought
Obj.3.B. Posters for bike/walk day
Obj.3D. Rst. Police contacted
Completed

Early Oct. 2010 Obj.3.C. Bike/Walk day held
Completed 65%
Jan 2011 Obj.2.C.5. MN Schools Cutting Carbon data updated with 2009-2010 data 75%
Sept 2010 to May 2011 Obj.2.C.3.4. Submit the “Action of the Month and read over PA system with the morning pledge monthly
Obj.2.D.1. SEE squad monitors lights on/off daily and compiles data
Obj.2.F.Math teachers use meters to collect energy data
Completed for Sept. – Dec.

March 2011 Obj.2.G.2. ES classes energy unit checks on improvements, documents with pictures and data 90%
Week 1 June 2011 Obj.2.D.2.SEE Squad submits data to V.Kanitz 95%
Late June 2011 Obj.2.C.6.Final Report submitted by V. Kanitz and Irish Green Team 100% Total funds used = $12263.18

This Interim report is respectfully submitted January 2011 by Veda Kanitz.
Please direct any questions or comments to Ms Kanitz