Students at Stoddert Elementary celebrate becoming the first DC public school equipped with a geothermal energy system.
Stoddert Elementary School Is The First In DCPS To Use Geothermal Energy
by Kavitha Cardoza
Stoddert Elementary School in Northwest DC has undergone a 34 million dollar makeover and is the first DC public school to have a geothermal energy system among it’s many environmentally friendly features.
Ryan Lewis has been attending Stoddert since he was in kindergarten. And this doesn’t look anything like the prefab building he was in last year.
“New classrooms, a new cafeteria, a new gym- a whole new school!” His mother Sharice says she loves all the natural light pouring in. “It kind of alters your mood as you walk in. It’s like finally… sunlight! Even the bathrooms are nice by the way!”
And there were several mothers like Susanna Lauer… impressed by the new equipment. “There are computers everywhere, there were three macs in the preK room!”
Architect Sean O’Donnell says there are lot of changes you can see, but he also says there are lots you can’t such as the geothermal system which uses the earth’s warmth to heat and cool the building. O’Donnell says they also improved the acoustics in classrooms. “So everyone can hear, be heard. In an early childhood environment, it’s very critical that speech is intelligible.”
Seven traditional public schools have been renovated in time for this academic year.
Photos from the DCPS Facebook page
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