LPS pockets national award for Park Middle School project

Park Middle School students have been enjoying a wide range of healthy benefits from a large renovation project on campus.
 
That list of positive outcomes grew on Sept. 20 with the unveiling of a national award.
 
Members of the Lincoln Public Schools Sustainability Team announced that the Park Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) project was the winner of the “Best in Class: Energy Efficiency Plus Health Award” from the United States Department of Energy.
 
Principal Charlotte Everts accepted the honor in front of more than 200 seventh-grade students in the auditorium. Only 17 school districts in the United States received recognition this year.
 
LPS Sustainability Coordinator Brittney Albin said she was thrilled with the national award. She felt it validated the district’s commitment to making Park’s campus a welcoming and healthy place for everyone.
 
“This was a community project, a collaborative project of what’s all going on in this school, and how can we use this opportunity of what is essentially a HVAC update, but have it be so much more to benefit the school,” Albin said. 

“It’s amazing that we got to be a part of this award, because LPS Operations works so hard throughout the whole district,” Everts said. “For us to be a showcase makes all of the hard work worth it.”
 
LPS voters approved the Park IAQ project as part of the 2020 bond initiative. The district spent approximately $20 million to improve many parts of the 1926 building.
 
One of the project’s biggest pieces was the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system with 212 wells and 108 water source heat pumps. A heat-recovery dedicated outside air system (DOAS) now provides both ventilation air and exhaust building air, and a geothermal variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system is able to heat and cool smaller office spaces.

Albin said LPS has become well-known across the United States for using the technology. The district has enjoyed extensive energy savings since its first geothermal project in 1992.

The nationally-recognized project also installed air conditioning in Park’s gym spaces for the first time. Pollen and other contaminants are being controlled through an advanced air-filtration system, and humidity levels inside the building have been stabilized and improved.

“It’s a huge, huge difference,” Everts said. “I just appreciate LPS Operations and how they work to make sure all of our buildings are equitable. Our schools are such a source of pride in our community.”

LPS replaced the school’s older lighting system with energy-efficient light emitting diode (LED) lights. New occupancy sensors are regulating the amount of lighting in all of the school’s rooms, and the district increased the amount of natural light with many energy-efficient windows.

Everts said the renovations have already made a major impact. The transition from natural gas to electric heating dropped Park’s energy and gas consumption from 73,000 therms per year to 4,500 therms per year. This allowed the school’s energy bill to fall from $270,788.59 in January 2019 to $153,907.25 in January 2023.
 
The school’s ENERGY STAR score – a U.S. Department of Energy rating system that measures energy performance – skyrocketed from 19 in January 2019 to 85 four years later. In addition, the greenhouse gas emissions intensity level fell from 9.8 to 4.1 after the renovations, which made Park’s entire campus healthier for the environment.
  
Everts and Albin said there have been many non-statistical improvements at Park too. Workers created an artificial-turfed practice field on the southwest end of campus after installing the underground wellfields. Students use the space every day for recess and educational activities.
 
A larger cafeteria has given students more room to eat breakfast and lunch, and new landscaping features have added to the area’s aesthetic appeal. LPS also partnered with Lincoln Parks and Recreation for additions to Cooper Park. Workers installed one tennis court and two pickleball courts near the practice field.
 
“What I love the most for the community and this neighborhood is that our school is now a hub,” Everts said. “If you come after school or on the weekends, there are families on the field and people are constantly using the courts, so that was such a benefit for us.”
 
Everts said the national award symbolizes the healthy benefits that Park students are enjoying from the project every day.

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