Rolla Public Schools Earns EHS Certification

ROLLA, Mo. - Sept. 26, 2013 - PRLog -- Rolla High School (RHS), one of 9 facilities in the Rolla Public school system, along with their Environmental Health Services (EHS) team, has earned a distinguishing certification as the first educational facility to be designated as a Gold EHS School by the Green Clean Institute (GCI).   This certification is the result of their dedication to education and implementation of “Best Practices”, verified via an international reporting program of criteria from GCI.

This certification will be presented as a result of verifiable attributes primarily originating from within the EHS team and their implementation of recognized procedures, products and practices.  RHS and GCI recognize that these attributes have positive impacts on the student body, staff, visitors and general public who grace this High School in Rolla, Missouri.  Additionally, this reporting program takes into consideration facility attributes, which together with the practices of the EHS team, create an improved and sustainable program, resulting in proactive and positive effects on the indoor environment of the facility.

To be eligible for this Gold EHS School certification from GCI, this EHS team first completed professional educational course materials, complete with testing, to earn their Silver EHS certification.  Chris Headrick, a certified GCIC Executive, then took on the task of verifying attributes outlined within the EHS 180 Best Practice Standard software.  This included not only identifying products and procedures used within the facility, but a detailed recording process.  With each line item recorded, points where awarded, with a goal of reaching a minimum of 350 points out of the 1000 points available.

The Rolla High School facility and their EHS team accounted for 625 points.  As the first educational setting to achieve this certification, RHS has set the bar for others to strive for.  To acknowledge this achievement, GCI will be presenting the Rolla School Board and the EHS team from Rolla High, with a certification door mat and individual awards.  This specialized mat will notify any individual entering RHS, that they are utilizing a facility which has meet certification criteria.  This signifies that together, the facility and EHS team, has gone above and beyond maintaining a campus that just appears clean.  Here the built environment is certified to have positive impacts on indoor air quality through the science of cleaning, utilized by this certified EHS team at Rolla High School.

This EHS team, inclusive of Chris Headrick, James Wallen, Jason Conroy, Jeff Lenhardt, Mark House, Ron Quick and Troy Richardson has shown that while even though most of the community may take for granted the maintenance of an educational facility, they have an understanding of the complexities of not only the requirements, but enjoy the rewards.  It is not often that ‘good press’ is highlighted when it comes to the news these days, but at Rolla High School, there are many impacting and rewarding practices now being recognized.

Over the past nine months, the Missouri School Boards Association (MSBA), has joined with GCI in the creation and hosting a series of FREE webinars.  The series, “Environmental Health in Education” can be accessed on the Homeland Security Information Network thru this website; http://www.gcicertified.com/green-school-certification.

Please help us let these individuals and their school know that we, as the tax paying public, appreciate that this EHS team and their facility at Rolla Public Schools has adopted a proactive methodology.  GCI congratulates both for their efforts in achieving this first ever distinction as a Gold EHS School.  David Thompson, President of GCI, will be making the formal presentation of the individual certifications, the RHS certification, as well as the official mat, at the Rolla Public School board of education meeting on November 14, 2013 at 500A Forum Drive, Rolla, Missouri.