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June, 2007
St. Joseph's School for the Blind
Takes the LEED
Jersey City, New Jersey - St. Joseph's School for the Blind has been awarded LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), recognizing its advanced achievements in sustainability.
"It is such a great honor to be awarded the LEED certification. This has been the vision for our student body and administration since the early planning stages. This is another example our continuing commitment to our students, administration and the community with regard to issues of sustainability,” said Gerald Kitzhoffer, Chief School Administrator.
LEED is the USGBC's leading-edge system for designing and constructing the world's greenest, energy efficient, high-performing buildings.
St. Joseph's School for the Blind was designed to achieve LEED Certification for energy use, lighting, water and material use as well as incorporating a variety of other sustainable strategies. LEED, which verifies environmental performance, occupant health and financial return, was established for market leaders to design and construct buildings that protect and save precious resources while also making good economic sense. For example, during the construction phase, fifty-seven percent of the debris generated was recycled and fifteen percent of the materials used to build the new school contained recycled materials which significantly reduced the amount of construction trash. To reduce the fuel used in transportation, twenty-four of the materials used in the building were manufactured within 500 miles. Water saving measures like low flow faucets and shower heads were installed creating the potential for saving water. Additionally, a carbon dioxide monitoring system adjusts the amount of fresh air coming into the school in proportion to the buildings occupants.
The new two-story state of art school houses twenty large, well equipped classrooms arranged so that young students and those with physical disabilities are on the first floor and older students and those who are more mobile are located on the second floor. Additional conference/meeting and multipurpose areas, music and art rooms allow our students to easily move around and explore their new surroundings.
Located in Heights section of Jersey City, the new state of the art facility was designed to anchor Concordia House, the student's residence to the adjacent sensory playground.
The LEED standard has been adopted nationwide by federal agencies, state and local governments, and interested private companies as the industry standard of measurement for green building.
About Concordia Learning Center at St. Joseph's School for the Blind
Located in Jersey City, New Jersey, St. Joseph's is an educational facility that has a 116 year-old tradition of providing quality services in a caring environment that fosters and maximizes each student's development. It is St. Joseph's mission to serve children throughout the state who are blind, visually impaired or who have multiple disabilities. For more information, please visit: www.sjsnj.org.
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Concordia Learning Center at St. Joseph's School
for the Blind
761 Summit Avenue • Jersey City, NJ 07307
Phone: (201) 876-5432 • Fax: (201) 876-5431
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