Hardhat Headlines: TAKING THE LEED The second in a series of updates on campus construction
By estimating the number of points a project will be credited at various stages of construction, planners predict the HDT project will achieve LEED Silver at the very least, and possibly gold. “This is a major accomplishment,” adds Headmaster Willy MacMullen ’78, “particularly when you consider that
much of the project involves renovating a building that goes back to 1912, as well as a facility that is still in constant use. We face challenges here not seen in completely new construction. But there was never a question about whether we would build a LEED-certified building. It is very important for us as a school.”
Club Spotlight Promoting Open Minds—FONTS Students are at the center of campus initiatives exploring philosophy and religion, and several clubs exist on campus under religious banners, including the Christian group FOCUS and the Jewish Student Organization, or JSO. Additionally, a new forum is called FONTS, or the Fellowship of Non-Theistic Students. With their grassroots drive toward open dialogue, FONTS has brought religious discussion into the forefront of the Taft consciousness. Ben Zucker ’09 and Keith Culkin ’09 began the club in the fall of 2007 as an opportunity “for atheists, agnostics and anyone else not sure about religion to have casual discussion.” Membership in the group is open, and they aim for weekly, hourlong meetings. Early on, they discussed
topics ranging from the existence of God to religious freedom in the U.S. The group has found more success recently with an online discussion board, where any student or faculty member can post thoughts on a range of topics. In fact, FOCUS head Jessica Yu ’09 is a frequent contributor to the FONTS forum. While some have responded negatively to the group’s unorthodox mantra, the founders have maturely taken those views into account, and allow all discussion topics on the forum and in meetings. “On the forum, atheists, agnostics, Christians, Muslims, Jews and people of all creeds—without faculty oversight—intelligently, meaningfully, and for the most part politely, debate innumerable topics relating to God, faith, and religion,” Zucker says. Taft Annual
The renovations to the west end of Horace Dutton Taft Hall, and the new dining hall addition especially, presented the school a unique opportunity to reduce its environmental impact. To advise architects and builders in the process of “greening,” the U.S. Green Building Council created the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification process. A registered project checklist helps estimate, based on a system of points assigned to such areas as sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality, what level of certification a project might achieve. The school worked closely with architects at Gund Partnership in the course of design, using LEED checklists to inform the decision-making process. “Early on in the process we sat around a table,” says project manager Lou Cherichetti, “looking at the checklists and started asking ‘Can we do this practically? financially? What’s most important?’ ” Some of the ways the project will minimize environmental impact include recycling 80 percent of construction waste, using reusable materials for floors and walls, and providing bike racks near the entrance and special parking for a hybrid vehicle. “They also allot points for being within a quarter mile of public transportation,” says Cherichetti, but it’s slightly more than that to the public bus stop on North Street if you exit HDT on the west side. “Among the areas where we reached,” he adds, “was in adding a cistern to collect rainwater for use in toilets, and reducing the ‘heat island’ using pavers in the courtyard instead of asphalt, which also helps runoff percolate through the surface. We’re also using wood products, including paneling, from renewable sources.”
Taft Bulletin Winter 2009
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