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Healthy Green Schools & Colleges (HGSC) is hosting its first webinar of the summer exploring a sustainable framework for creating healthy and sustainable learning environments.

The HGSC program is part of Healthy Schools Campaign, a national nonprofit that has worked for 20 years to ensure that students have access to healthy school environments where they can learn and thrive. Designed to support K-12 facilities directors to ensure their day-to-day operations prioritize health and sustainability, the program includes:

• A science-based standard for healthy, sustainable facilities management
• An assessment school districts and higher education institutions can use to compare current operations to the standard
• Opportunities for school facilities professionals to learn and share with one another
• A variety of resources and programming
• An opportunity to earn a certification once a district has met the standard, creating a spotlight of positive recognition for the achievement

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) was awarded the first-ever certification in this program, and it is the subject of the upcoming webinar. Using CPS as a case study, HGSC will showcase how the district implemented its framework to drive meaningful improvement across its facilities department. As the first district in the country to achieve HGSC Certification, CPS will share key insights from its first year, post-certification, highlighting its challenges, lessons learned, and ongoing progress toward recertification in 2026.

Overall, attendees can anticipate gaining an understanding of how the HGSC Program can serve as a catalyst for operational consistency, create stronger cross-departmental collaboration, and enable measurable progress toward safe and healthy learning environments.

The 1-hour online session will include a presentation and a question-and-answer period. Presenters include the following experts:

• Rob Christlieb, Executive Director of Facilities Operations & Maintenance, CPS
• Brian Martin, Deputy Program Director, Facility O+M and Capital Planning & Renovation, CPS
• Rebecca Belvisi, Project Manager/Project Controls, CPS
• Sara Porter, Vice President of External Affairs and Director, HGSC, Healthy Schools Campaign

Learn more about the first event, held on Thursday, June 11, and register to attend. For another case study emphasizing HGSC's role in optimizing facility operations through a sustainability lens, click here.