The dormitories at The Fay School received a LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a nationally recognized green building standard that awards building projects for sustainable design and performance.
PROJECT BACKGROUND
The new, village-style dorms are home to Fay's youngest boarders, each housing 16 students and 3 faculty apartments in a home-like setting. The dorms feature the latest in environmental design principles, including the use of recycled or rapidly renewable materials, solar energy for heating water, and reuse of storm water runoff for landscaped plantings. The building used materials that came from within 500 miles of the site in order to reduce the use of fossil fuels.
The Fay School dormitories earned its LEED Gold rating for a variety of green features: The building has a storm-water management system that significantly reduces storm water runoff; an innovative waste water technologies that treat waste water on site; and low-flow fixtures reduce water use by more than 20%. The energy usage savings are 25% annually.
Fay School spokesman Greg Anderson said, "it is significant to note that waste water in these dorms is 100 % recycled on campus. The school's state-of-the-art waste water treatment facility moves the dorm waste water through the facility and back into the dorms, thus no town water is used for flushing toilets." Anderson said the practice reduces water use inside the dorms by more than 20%. In addition, he said that new measurement and monitoring systems have been put in place to allow students to see how much energy they are reducing.
In addition, care was taken to make the construction of the new dormitories as low-impact as possible. More than 10% of its materials included recycled content; more than 85% of the waste from the construction was recycled; and the building used material that is rapidly renewable, such as the bamboo flooring, rubber stair treads and landing material, and linoleum flooring, the building uses low-VOC (volatile organic compounds) emitting paints.
USING GREEN FEATURES TO TEACH
Fay School's many green features serve a purpose beyond preserving the environment and promoting good student and teacher health. The creativity and collaboration of the school's designers and faculty resulted in a school where eco-friendly design has opened up a new world of teaching opportunities.
A measurement and monitoring system ensures the mechanical systems are performing as intended, and allows the students to compete on reducing energy use.
Director of Residential Life Andy Long recognized the importance of the dorms' environmental sensitivity: "These buildings are not simply designed to be more efficient and have less environmental impact," he said, "but will also become an organic teaching tool that will help foster a mindfulness of living responsibly."
A Tradition of Educational Excellence
Founded in 1866 and located 25 miles from Boston in Southborough, Massachusetts, Fay School is an independent, coeducational day and boarding school for 465 students in Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 9. The School's boarding program (grades six through nine) serves 100 students from throughout the United States and more than 15 foreign countries. Fay School is the oldest junior boarding school in the country.
With the School's core values of Academic Excellence, Earnest Effort, Honorable Conduct, Dedicated Service, and Wellness of Mind, Body, and Spirit, Fay School believes in nurturing each child's potential. Through participation in a wide variety of athletic, artistic, extracurricular, and service activities, Fay students gain a better understanding of their interests and talents, and become actively-engaged, community-minded citizens who take initiative and assume leadership roles. Fay is committed to helping each child reach her/his fullest potential in preparation for a productive and fulfilling life. Visit Fay School online at www.fayschool.org.