by Brianna Crandall — November 21, 2014—The not-for-profit Healthy Schools Campaign (HSC) has just announced the launch of the Green Clean Schools Leadership Council, a new group that brings together award-winning school facilities managers to provide innovative and practical green cleaning guidance to schools across the country. The Council will provide up-to-date guidance to HSC on new developments in green cleaning. Council members will also provide advice directly to school facilities leaders using HSC’s new green cleaning assessment tool.
“By bringing together the Leadership Council, we are able to share the valuable lessons we’ve learned from years of experience in green cleaning,” said founding member Gene Woodard, director of the building services department at the University of Washington. “Sharing these strategies and practical tips creates opportunities for us to grow as leaders and to support other schools on this journey.”
“Making sure the school environment is healthy and clean is incredibly important to students and staff,” said founding member Pat Pizzo, director of facilities for the East Meadow School District in Westbury, NY. “Making sustainability a priority is incredibly important to future generations. With green cleaning, we can achieve both these goals in a practical and cost-effective way.”
In conjunction with the new Leadership Council, HSC also launched GreenCleanSchools.org, a new Web portal that consolidates practical information and easy-to-use resources from HSC’s multi-faceted strategy to ensure green, sustainable school cleaning programs.
This Web site builds on the tremendous success of HSC’s Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools, first released in 2006. In addition to the Five Steps to Green Cleaning in Schools popularized by the guide, the new Web portal highlights a strategic approach to policy change and the power of recognizing successful green programs.
“Over the past eight years, we’ve seen that transforming cleaning in schools is more than simply recommending green products,” said Mark Bishop, HSC vice president. “It’s about providing practical how-to advice but also about changing policy, recognizing success, and especially about learning from the remarkable leaders who are making change in schools across the nation. We see the launch of the Leadership Council and the Green Clean Schools portal as a natural next step based on this lesson.”
Steve Ashkin, author of the Quick and Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools, president of The Ashkin Group LLC, and executive director of the Green Cleaning Network, said HSC and the Leadership Council are well-positioned to help make green cleaning in schools a reality nationwide.
“For years, Healthy Schools Campaign has been at the forefront of the movement to green our nation’s schools and has been a leader in recognizing and celebrating the insight of school facility staff making changes,” Ashkin said. “The Leadership Council and Green Clean Schools Web portal represent an important new phase in transforming the way our nation’s schools are cleaned.”
Green Clean Schools is made possible with the generous support of cleaning industry leaders, including Platinum Sponsors UL Environment, Inc. and Sealed Air, Diversey Care.
The full list of sponsors and Leadership Council members is available online. HSC invites readers to learn more and join the movement for Green Clean Schools at GreenCleanSchools.org.
