MADISON — Legacy Elementary School celebrated their Green Ribbon School status, recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, Sept. 26 at the school’s campus.

Legacy is one of only three schools in Alabama to receive this award. The other two honorees are Woodland Forrest Elementary School (Tuscaloosa) and Jacksonville State University (Jacksonville).

The U.S. Department of Education released their list of the 46 schools, six school districts and six postsecondary institutions to receive Green Ribbon recognition in May, and Legacy officially received their award in mid-September in Washington, D.C.

Marge Dahl, a fifth-grade social studies and science teacher at Legacy, said part of being a Green Ribbon School is aiming to teach students about the world around them and allowing them to experience the great outdoors through hands-on learning.

“It’s exciting because our kids are given the opportunity here at Legacy to be outside and to know that the environment is there for them and to experience it, experience the animals, experience the plants, and just the wildlife that’s out there, and also to preserve our environment because there’s a lot of things that happen that we are not taking care of,” Dahl said.

As part of the Madison County school system, Legacy is one of many schools that have been working with Schneider Electric, an energy management company with presence around the globe, to reach their energy goals.

According to a press release, the partnership between Schneider Electric and Madison County Schools will help the school system save more than $40 million over the next two decades. An energy savings performance contract helped to fund this project, and the savings will be used to improve infrastructure and other “transformational changes” for the school system. In addition, the energy savings could equate to the amount of energy saved from taking 317 cars off the roads per year, planting 431 acres of trees or removing more than 1,583 tons of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

Keith Trawick, principal of Legacy, said the U.S. Department of Education assessed schools for Green Ribbon status based on three main criteria: health and fitness, reducing environmental impact, and environmental and sustainability education.

“To have someone on the national level recognize us for our efforts and for the teachers’ efforts and what our kids are doing, that means a lot,” Trawick said. “It doesn’t get any better than that to me.”

Trawick noted that Legacy’s outdoor classroom, which has been around since about 2008, was one major component that helped Legacy win the award. The outdoor classroom has livestock, 11 learning stations and a fully stocked pond.

“There’s not really an objective or standard in the course of study that we couldn’t teach out here—from math to science to social studies and reading,” Trawick said. “ … It’s just a matter of utilizing the resources that we’ve got and using the outdoor classroom as just an extension of the classroom inside.”

Madison County Schools Superintendent Matt Massey was present at the celebration and commended Trawick for helping to lead the school in sustainability and energy management, as well as turning Legacy into a positive example for other schools in the district.

“It really exemplifies what Madison County schools are about, and it’s always fun to come out and to celebrate with them,” Massey said. “ … They’re here doing all the hard work with the teachers, and it just enhances the experience of the kids, so it’s pretty cool to be part of a system where you have schools that reach out and aim higher and do what’s kind of above and beyond what’s expected.”

Legacy Elementary School was built in 2007 and is one of 27 schools in the Madison County school system. The campus is located in Madison at 165 Pine Grove Rd.