Old Trail School is committed to raising responsible and compassionate leaders and believes that sustainability is integral to that mission.
Most notably, in 2010, Old Trail School launched a Living Classroom, which incorporates its eco-friendly system of treating wastewater with classroom space and a functioning greenhouse. Throughout the year, it hosted numerous organizations and individuals to learn about this system. The school also furthered programming at its organic farm and added a farm educator role to its administration. In these ways, Old Trail School has created a unique sustainable classroom environment for its students, built on its ideal location in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
Additionally, the school involves its students in nearly all aspects of its sustainability initiatives, including those in the classroom as well as those that directly reduce the school’s carbon footprint. Sustainability is taught from preschool through eighth grade. Its students also help manage and care for various animals and gardens within the school’s organic farm. In the past year, the school has sent several students on special trips to learn about how they can better care for the earth and the people on it. Old Trail School also enhanced sustainability throughout its school operations, utilizing more organic products, recycling in each office and dining area, and transitioning nearly all of its communications to electronic formats – and its students have been an integral part of these improvements as well.
The school even reaches out to the community to better educate residents and underprivileged children about issues related to sustainability. Last year, a group of students met regularly with farmers from the winter farmers market that the school held, researched and interviewed them, and prepared podcasts which were promoted on a website for the community and its residents. The school also offers a summer enrichment program for underprivileged children.
