Sustainability Report 2023-24
LETTER FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL
As Watershed School was being imagined and developed, school founders, Jason Berv, Ph.D. and Sumaya Abu-Haidar, Ph.D. wrote a set of design principles to help the school focus our vision, remind us of what is important, and inform future decisions. One of these principles included the statement that “schools should be of service to their human and ecological communities.” From our founding, Watershed has taken to heart our responsibility to be a good neighbor, to positively benefit the community around us.
We live this through our research-based, future-focused, college preparatory curriculum, by engaging students in work that supports other organizations focused on environmental and community sustainability, thereby helping our students become positive changemakers in the world.
Watershed’s Strategic Vision states this clearly: In these times of change and challenge, we must think big about education -- we must reimagine what schools can be We envision students and educators making tangible contributions to the broader community graduates ready to engage as creative problem solvers for a better future, and our school itself being a force for the common good in our community. We are committed to working with others to build a future that is more just, more sustainable, and more compassionate.
We are grateful to the Sustainability Committee for challenging us to continue to grow our sustainability efforts and for creating this inaugural report.
Tim Breen, Ph D Head of Watershed School
I can’t think of a more relevant and timely report. Sustainability is one of the world’s greatest challenges; what better way to teach children than modeling how to address one of those challenges? - Erica Meyer, parent of a former Watershed student, trustee
What we are learning and doing here today will someday change the world for the better. - Watershed Student ’27
INAUGURAL WATERSHED SUSTAINABILITY REPORT - 2023-2024
What a monumental time it is for Watershed School: we are 20 years old, about to move into our beautiful, permanent facility, and this year, Watershed will produce its very first sustainability report. So… Welcome to the First Annual Watershed Sustainability Report!
As we embark on this important journey, the creation of a Watershed Sustainability Report has multiple purposes. First, it is our goal to harness the Watershed Sustainability Report to continually challenge and push our sustainability efforts. A er all, sustainability is not just about reducing paper waste or using alternative energy. It is also about adaptation and resilience, about being a more effective institution, and about being a stronger community member. To that end, our second goal for this report is to creatively engage our students and faculty in the process of sustainable development. And finally, we aim to use this report to keep our community engaged in, and informed of, our successes and our stumbles.
As with all our Watershed adventures, this one will be as challenging as it is rewarding. Thank you, our community, for taking this journey with us.
WATERSHED SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE CHARTER
The purpose of the Watershed Sustainability Committee is to provide guidance to the Board of Trustees on matters relating to environmental sustainability. More specifically, the committee will explore ways in which Watershed, as an organization, can leverage our resources, assets and opportunities to make our community more environmentally sustainable. Furthermore, the committee will research and recommend sustainability issues that are pertinent to the school, its stakeholders and community; and assist establishing environmental goals and integrating sustainability into current and future Watershed activities.
START PROGRAM
As hubs of their communities, schools can increase community resilience, mitigate climate change, transform markets and policy, and prepare citizens to think and act in new and creative ways, so that present and future generations can thrive. - Green Schools Alliance
This year, Watershed became the first school in Colorado to adopt Green Schools Alliance’s START (Sustainability, Tracking, Analytics Roadmap Tool); the only sustainability tracking and benchmarking tool designed for K-12 schools.
The START so ware allows Watershed to measure and analyze our sustainability efforts across 3 categories: Educational Programs, Organizational Culture, and Physical Place. Beyond providing a snapshot of our sustainability metrics, the START so ware gives Watershed a roadmap on how to continually evolve our sustainability efforts through resources and collaboration with other schools. As we move into our new facility, the so ware will also provide tools for tracking energy and water use, and waste production.
Beyond sustainability concepts being core to Watershed curriculum, it is essential for the student body to see their actions having a positive impact on the sustainability outcomes of their school. Watershed’s START data will be available to our classrooms. Metrics may be gathered, studied and refined by our students, thereby giving them a picture of what we are doing right, what we are doing wrong and what we can do differently. A key goal going forward is to continually increase student involvement in the sustainability of the school, and indeed, to contribute directly to the Watershed sustainability report.
The START program ’ s “sustainability report card” (see below) will be part of an annual report. Watershed will share our progress, our goals and our short-falls, year-over-year.
Below is a summary of the first START Watershed Sustainability Report Card. Let us begin by sharing some key highlights and take-aways for 2023-24.
Educational Programs
Our Watershed families value an integrated, transdisciplinary, college preparatory curriculum that empowers students to to take on the world’s great challenges and make a difference in their local and global communities.We were pleased that, despite this being our first year of reporting, Watershed has already achieved a high ranking in the Educational Programs Metrics. A couple of our higher rankings in this category include, Metric #2 Outdoor ProgramsEncouraging students to connect with their natural surroundings and Metric #6 Course ContentIntegrating sustainability-related content into academic subjects in every grade (see the course curriculum section of this report for a few illustrations of the amazing work being done by our students and educators.) We have been excited by the evolution of Metric #3 Student Groups - Building student engagement in environmental and/or sustainable activities at Watershed this year. We have a smart and active Watershed Student Environmental Group, who have contributed to the transportation report and assessments for future sustainability efforts. The group hopes to expand in size and effort moving forward. They have big plans for Watershed as we move into our new location. As well, going forward, the group will be working directly with the Sustainability Committee and expanding their contributions to future Watershed Sustainability Reports.
Organizational Culture
Within the Organizational Culture Metrics, we can see where we are making progress, where we are just setting out, and where we have opportunities to develop. 2023-24 is the first year we have a Sustainability Committee and a Sustainability Annual Report (hello!), giving us points in
Metric #17 Sustainability Committee - Having a dedicated committee responsible for steering the school’s environmental efforts and advancing sustainability projects on campus, and Metric #11 Communications - Providing ongoing, formal communication about the school’s sustainability programs and progress to the school community. We are also proud to be at the highest tier in Metric #22 Low Income Accessibility - Preventing money from being a barrier to student involvement or success in your community. Watershed School allocates 13% of our gross tuition to provide assistance to our families in need. As we move into our new location we can look forward to positive movement in metrics of Physical Activity (Metic #27) and Community Service (Metric #12), amongst others.
Physical Place
Physical Place Metrics are where Watershed has the most exciting opportunities. Just one of the benefits of our new location is that it presents a wealth of possibilities to expand our START ranking. Here are a few highlights from the new facilities, and how they immediately benefit our sustainability ranking, as well as some exciting possibilities for the future.
Metric #50 Transportation Support - Implementing structures and strategies to promote sustainable commuting to and from your school. Following, in part, an in-depth evaluation done by an ambitious collection of Watershed students (Student Transportation Report) and a survey of current and prospective Watershed families, a busing system to the new location will be implemented starting next year. A carpooling app will be launched. Additionally, the Boulder RTD Route 205 conveniently stops across the street from our new location. We will create opportunities for small groups of students to experience the route together, so they feel comfortable using the transit system.
Metric #38 Design & Construction - Adopting Integrated Design geared towards building greener and more energy-efficient facilities when undergoing remodeling
or renovations. Needless to say, this metric was tailor-made for Watershed, this year! Guiding principles in our renovation included:
● Employing Boulder construction and sustainable deconstruction environmental guidelines.
● Boulder energy conservation code, such as
○ Windows energy efficiency, natural lighting, air quality
○ Heating and cooling efficiency.
Material separated for sustainable deconstruction during new campus renovations.
New campus renovations maximize the use of natural light
Watershed students & staff contributed to new campus planning and design.
As you can see, this coming year will mark big progress for Watershed in increasing our START sustainability score. That doesn’t mean our work will be done a er year-one at our new facility. Here are a few metrics we foresee evolving in the year to come.
Metric #40 Grounds Management - This project, under the guidance of the middle school students, will employ sustainable land care, such as native plants and water conservation, while also creating a fun and functional outdoor space for the Watershed community. Metric #41 Energy Consumption - At the new facility Watershed can begin tracking and reduction of energy consumption. Metric #50 Transportation Support - The new Watershed facility implements strategies to promote sustainable commuting to and from school. These include a carpool app, providing preferential parking for carpool, providing bike racks, reduced public transit, a campus shuttle bus system, and electric vehicle recharging stations.
One of the most exciting things about initiating an annual sustainability report for Watershed School has been looking at our work through the lens of the START metrics - and feeling proud! Watershed has sustainability in its bones. We are energized to see where we can get in 2024-25, with our new Watershed facilities, our community, and our metrics and goals to pilot us forward. Onward!
SUSTAINABILITY IN WATERSHED COURSE CURRICULUM
As illustrated above, sustainability is not just about infrastructure. Rather, by incorporating sustainability across the school curriculum, Watershed students build values of responsibility, critical thinking, and global citizenship. They graduate as empowered individuals, prepared to be positive agents of change, no matter their life-path. Here are just a few examples of Watershed coursework and its connection to sustainability over this past year.
Materials, Plastic, and Consumption: Rise of the Anthropocene (11/12th Grade) What is the Anthropocene? Human technology includes the manufacturing of tools that help us adapt to a variety of environments and circumstances, changing the way we consume and use resources on our planet This course explores these aspects of human behavior through time, from tanned skins to hard metals to modern plastics, and their impacts on human lives and our planet. From the molecular makeup of the material to the chemistry of production to the energy requirements to make and move them, students get a clear idea of how our past has affected our present and how we can affect the future to find more sustainable solutions to human consumption.
The class produced a dra of the final report, which was shared with Colorado Senator Hickenlooper and other policy makers. See their final report here.
Eating Dirt Expedition (6/7th Grade)
What is soil and how does this o en overlooked resource impact our ecological and anthropogenic communities? In this introduction to soil science, students examine the role of soil in cycling nutrients, regulating water flow, supporting plant growth, and sequestering carbon.
This class helps us learn about the Colorado River which plays a massive role in the West’s water supply, and it helps us think about ways to improve our water security and sustainability within the Colorado River basin.
-Watershed Student ‘29
Physics of Bicycles (8th Grade)
What could be better than doing what you love and serving the common good at the same time? That’s exactly what Community Cycles in Boulder, CO is all about and one of the (many) reasons Watershed School is proud to partner with them!
It's a fantastic opportunity to work with Watershed, where we see kids learn that they can have a real impact on the world around them. There's a good chance that they will see the bike that they worked on out and about in Boulder!
- Dax Burgos, Dir. Community Cycles
“Physics of Bicycles” is a staple of the Watershed middle school course offerings. Coupled with the companion, humanities-focused expedition course, the “Power of Bicycles,” students are able to dive deep into the social, environmental, and mechanical aspects of bicycles and bicycle use The expertise, passion, and dedication of Community Cycles embodies much of what Watershed students learn in one, wonderful local nonprofit
The great thing about working with local partners like Community Cycles is the simplicity of coordinating a mutually beneficial partnership. Not only do students see a clear connection between their work and the community they live in, but Watershed is able to provide a real and tangible benefit to our local community. It's a win-win!”
- Locke Hassett, Watershed Educator
In the 2024-25 academic year, sustainability will continue to feature prominently in the Watershed curriculum, including:
Green Giants (MS expedition): Asking our essential question: how do trees impact local and global ecosystems and how can their amazing biology be harnessed to solve a multitude of challenges?
Warming World: The Chemistry of Climate Change and Atmospheric Science (HS expedition): Asking our essential question: how does human activity impact our atmosphere and what are the implications of these changes?
See our full course catalog for all the meaningful and challenging classes available to our Watershed students.
2024-25 WATERSHED SUSTAINABILITY TARGETS
START tracking
In the 2024-25 academic year at Watershed, we will continue to track our START score, with the more specific objective of increasing our scores, most notably in the Physical Place category of metrics.
As we settle into our new Watershed home, we will also begin to track more qualitative metrics, such as water and energy consumption.
Community Partners/Neighbourhood Development
Community partnerships are core to the Watershed mission, values and goals. One of our goals in the 2024-25 year, and beyond, is to strengthen our community partnerships by engaging students, families, local businesses, and organizations in collaborative efforts to address environmental challenges and promote sustainable development.
Watershed school, our students and families will continue to contribute to the community through service-learning opportunities and by sharing school resources with community organizations. Additionally, Watershed can collaborate with community partners to provide valuable resources for students including academic enrichment, mentoring and career development.
Student Involvement
The Watershed Student Environmental Activism Club and the Sustainability Committee have resolved to work together more in the coming year. Examples of ways students will increase involvement include:
● Feasibility studies for Watershed sustainability projects.
● Sustainability Report contributions.
● Community connection.
Student participation is essential in moving the Watershed Sustainability targets forward. We look forward to their brilliant young minds and their tenacious constitutions to lead the way.
CONCLUSION
Thank you for reading our First Annual Watershed Sustainability Report. What a monumental year it has been for our community - and what an exciting year we have ahead.
Join us this coming 2024-25 school year, as Watershed embarks on our sustainability journey.
See you next year!
Watershed Sustainability Committee Members
Sonia Schnitzer P’24, ‘27, Trustee (committee chair)
Erica Meyer P’26, Trustee
Chris Rice P’27, Trustee
Emma Starek ‘15, Trustee
Julie Goldstein P’24, Board Chair
Tim Breen, Ph.D., Head of School