Healthy Green Schools & Colleges (HGSC) is a comprehensive program that provides school facility leaders with resources to transform the health and sustainability of school and university environments without making major capital investments by identifying low- and no-cost measures that can make a major difference in occupant health and IAQ.
The HGSC program is designed to be accessible for schools across the spectrum, whether they are just getting started exploring environmental health and sustainability improvements or are already a leader.
You’re Ready to Explore the HGSC Program, Now What?
Anyone interested in learning more about or joining the Healthy Green Schools & Colleges program will benefit from taking the HGSC self-assessment. The assessment is housed on a web-based form and collects information on how the institution performs on all criteria within the HGSC standard.
The Healthy Green Schools & Colleges program provides an assessment and evaluation at the institution level. For K-12 schools, this means one of the following eligible scopes must be used when completing the assessment:
- A traditional public K–12 school district in its entirety, including all school buildings and students served by that district under a board of education (or equivalent governing body)
- Charter schools, with all schools under the decision-making and budget authority of the governing body included in the certification process
- Private schools, with all schools under the decision-making and budget authority of the governing body included in the certification process
For higher education institutions, one of the following eligible scopes must be used when completing the assessment:
- A college or university in its entirety, including all departments, business units, buildings, and students
- A campus of physically contiguous grounds
- An independent operating unit within the higher education institution that has budget, planning, and decision-making authority (e.g., dining or residence services)
School districts and universities that complete the assessment will receive key information on which HGSC standard criteria their institution already complies with as well as areas in which the institution needs to improve in order to meet certification thresholds.
How to Prepare to Take the HGSC Self-Assessment
The HGSC self-assessment is available online and can be completed by any school district or university. The six-page questionnaire takes about 30-minutes to complete and can be saved and revised as needed until it is submitted.
Individuals completing the questionnaire will likely need to collect information from various parties (e.g., procurement, environmental health and safety, maintenance, etc.) to ensure the accuracy of the answers submitted in the assessment. This process can take a few hours and may require informing colleagues about the HGSC program and its importance in achieving institutional goals.
To aid in preparing to submit responses to the assessment, we recommend downloading a PDF copy of the assessment to review all questions, assign specific questions to appropriate personnel, and gather necessary information before completing the online form.
Schools can hit submit when all the questions in the online assessment have been answered. If this is the first time an institution has taken the assessment, a member of our team will be in touch within five business days to discuss the results and explore the best next steps.