Somerville Elementary School Achieves Sustainability Certification

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Somerville Elementary School has met the rigorous requirements to achieve Sustainable Jersey for Schools certification. This school forms part of a group of 147 schools that achieved the Sustainable Jersey for Schools certification in 2020.

“I am thrilled that we have earned a designation as a Sustainable School – Bronze Level,” said Dr. Lorna Oates-Santos, principal of Somerville Elementary School. “The team of teachers and parents who worked hard to document the robust initiatives at Somerville School are committed to continuing to reflect on our practices and refine our work around how we both educate all in the community about the impact we have on the health of the environment and the power we have to make positive change around us!  We believe that this work is not a temporary activity but, rather, planting seeds for lifelong practices that honor a healthy coexistence of humans and nature!”

Sustainable Jersey for Schools, a program for pre-kindergarten through twelfth-grade public schools in New Jersey, is voluntary, but achieving certification takes commitment and collaborative effort. Each school that is certified at the bronze level must submit documentation to show it has completed a balanced portfolio of the program’s sustainability actions, attaining a minimum of 150 points. This year, six schools achieved certification at the more advanced silver level which requires a minimum of 350 points of sustainability actions.