Aspects of Our Green Campus | Windrush School

Our Green Campus

Windrush School's four-acre, grassy campus lies within the East Bay city of El Cerrito. The campus reflects the school's Core Values of Sustainability, Authenticity and Inspiration. In September 2008, the Middle School opened in a new, innovative building, featuring seven state-of-the-art classrooms and K-8 library.

The building helps meet the school's need to expand the academic program to offer an education to more students. It also honors the local environment by preserving much of the campus' open space and respects the global environment by minimizing resource use. The building pays homage to the past by incorporating designs that reflect the historic Chung Mei Home, the school's other main and original building that served as a home for orphaned and abandoned Chinese boys from 1934-1954.

By embracing Windrush's bayside environment and employing green building techniques, the two-story structure is 97 percent more energy efficient than a comparably sized building. School planners also meticulously selected the building location to maximize open space on the campus.

Windrush is one of the greenest schools in the Bay Area and in Northern California! In 2009, the building earned "platinum" certification, the highest rating for sustainable building standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. The structure was constructed with environmentally friendly materials and LEED guidelines. Certification is the national benchmark for green design, construction and operation, which verifies a structure meets the highest performance standards. The priority of minimizing non-renewable resource use is a practice that will continue throughout the structure's life.

Green Techniques

Skylights and windows reduce electric light usage.
Windows and skylights alleviate need for air conditioners by harnessing bay breeze.
Radiant floor heat consumes less energy.
Insulated concrete forms reduce deforestation by minimizing wood use and increase insulation of walls and roof.
Water efficient fixtures use 50 percent less water.
Sustainable and recycled construction materials and furnishings lessen overall impacts.
Solar panels generate electricity.
Overall building design–light-colored concrete and roofing material as well as landscaping–reduces heat production.
Alternative transportation encouraged–bike racks added instead of more parking spaces. Fuel-efficient vehicles have parking priority.

Landscaping also plays an integral role in reducing environmental impacts. Plants collect and redirect rain water, while treating and reducing water entering El Cerrito's storm water system. Roof plants cool the building through evaporation and drought tolerant plants around the building require little or no irrigation. The landscape attracts birds and other wildlife.