21st Century High Performance Schools


The NJ Schools Development Authority (SDA), through extensive research, has combined National Best Practices in Education Design with LEED™ (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) developed by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) to create the New Jersey 21st Century Schools Design Manual. This Design Manual defines criteria for the design and construction of 21st Century Schools that will benefit communities and will provide cost-efficient schools for the districts.
The SDA has developed a set of 24 Design Criteria to guide the design team in developing high performance schools. Meeting these criteria throughout the entire design phase will result in a high performance 21st century school - one that will enhance teaching and learning, reduce operating costs, protect the environment, and be an asset to its community. SDA has established a set of five key performance objectives for all SDA-constructed School Facilities Projects in New Jersey.
Design Criteria
Healthy and Productive - enabling students and teachers to achieve maximum potential by providing:
Acoustic comfort
Thermal Comfort
Visual Comfort
Large Amounts of Natural Daylight
Indoor Air Quality
Safety and Security
Cost Effective - providing facilities that save money over time by being efficient to build, maintain and operate, and by employing:
Energy Analysis
Life Cycle Cost
Commissioning

Educationally Effective - creating superior teaching and learning environments that:
Embrace Learning Centered Design
Incorporate Stimulating Architecture
Are Accessible
Are Flexible and Adaptable
Optimize Information Technology

Sustainable - minimizing environmental impacts and maximizing the use of non-polluting, renewable resources, by integrating:

High Performance Building Shell
Renewable Energy
High Performance Mechanical Systems
High Performance Lighting Systems
Environmentally Friendly Materials and Products
Environmentally Responsive Site Planning
Water efficiency

Community Centered - creating schools that are integral parts of their communities by:
Community Involvement
Community Use
Catalyst for Community Economic Development




Manchester Twp. has incorporated natural daylighting throughout their high school. Natural daylight, a hallmark of a high performance school, has demonstrated to have a positive correlation with better student performance.


The New Long Branch Middle School is a 3-story facility with an attic level reserved for mechanical equipment. It includes a geo-thermal heating/cooling well system that permits the school to be more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. The school also serves as a Red Cross emergency shelter for the community


Jose Marti School in Union City has a two level design that accommodates a school library on the upper level and branch of the Union City Public Library on the lower level.


High Performance Schools Offer Healthy Interior Spaces

SDA is utilizing energy efficient design criteria for school facilities projects to build schools that offer healthy interior spaces, such as good air quality, comfortable acoustics and lighting, and other high performance features to create environments that are highly conducive to learning.

Poor classroom acoustics can hamper students' concentration. Trying to hear in a poor acoustical environment is like trying to read in a room with the lights off: stress increases, concentration decreases, and learning is impaired. Hot stuffy rooms - and cold, drafty ones - reduce attention spans and limit productivity.The new Newark Central High School will be fully barrier free, students and community residents with physical limitations will be able to attend their neighborhood school or participate in community activities held at the school.
The facility's environmental design features include geothermal heating and cooling, an energy-recovery system for all continuously occupied spaces and day lighting for virtually all instruction areas.
They also waste energy, adding unnecessary cost to a school's bottom line. The use of natural light is one of the most important attributes of a 21st century school. Daylight is the highest quality light source for visual tasks and can also save a school money. Properly designed natural lighting systems can reduce the need for electric lighting, which can account for 35 to 50 percent of a school's electrical energy consumption. The reduction of heat generated due to fewer lights can allow the air conditioning system to be smaller.



Sustainable or "green" design strongly encourages design and construction practices that significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impact of building on the environment such as managing construction waste and debris or site remediation. Building green reduces impact of natural resource consumption, reduces

Taking the LEED™ in Building for the Future

In 2000, the NJ Legislature directed in section 2(d) of the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act (the Act) that the design of school facilities should incorporate maximum operating efficiencies and new technologies to advance energy efficiency of school facilities and the efficiency of other school building systems. Two years after the Act, Executive Order 24 required that all new school design shall incorporate LEED™ Version 2.0 guidelines from the USGBC to achieve maximum energy efficiency and environmental sustainability in the design of schools.

Camden community members discuss with design team plans for a new Early Childhood
Development Center

operating costs, optimizes life cycle economic performance, and enhances occupant comfort and health by creating environmentally neutral buildings. New Jersey is meeting guidelines developed by LEED™, and by doing so, the latest energy-efficient technology is being incorporated into the design and construction of new SDA schools in an effort to realize continuous cost savings over the life of the facility.


SDA utilizes LEED™ principles as a benchmark to measure performance in the design and construction of 21st century high performance schools. A summary of LEED™ principles and required prerequisites are listed below. All prerequisites are required. If any required prerequisite is not met, LEED™ credits cannot be taken for any part of the entire project.


LEED Principles:

  • Sustainable site planning
  • Water efficiency
  • Energy & atmospheric efficiency
  • Conservation of materials & resources
  • Indoor environmental quality
  • Innovative & design process


LEED Rating System Required Prerequisites:

  • Sediment and Erosion Control
  • Minimum Energy Performance
  • Fundamental Building Systems Commissioning
  • CFC Reduction in HVAC Equipment
  • Storage and Collection of Recyclables
  • Minimum Indoor Air Quality Performance
  • Elimination of Tobacco Smoke


The SDA LEED Policy calls for design consultants to design schools that meet a minimum of 26 LEED™ points where possible.

    LEED 2.0 Rating System Levels of Certification:
    • LEED Certified 26-32 points
    • Silver Level 33-38 points
    • Gold Level 39-51 points
    • Platinum Level 52+ points


High performance school design takes LEED™ principles to an even higher level by incorporating education and community components. Schools are more than bricks and mortar. Well planned schools are the center of a community, and the way in which schools are designed with spaces to be used by both students and community residents, such as auditoriums, gymnasiums, media centers and cafeterias allows for greater community use of the school. The most successful schools have a high level of parent and community involvement. This involvement can be enhanced if schools are designed with community participation.

P.A.N.T.H.E.R. Academy in Paterson is housed in a renovated factory building, the Academy, has a planetarium that is both an educational asset and community resource. A grant provided NASA-related educational equipment and resources and supports student participation in robotics and Space Camps to encourage student entry into the science, mathematics, and engineering fields.




Millville Lakeside Middle School Performing Arts Center


For more information please visit the High Performance Schools Resource Gateway website. This is a web-based resource dedicated to the planning, design, construction and operation of high performance educational facilities.

For more information about LEED™ visit the NJ Chapter of USGBC.
View Examples of New Jersey High Performance Schools
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