13-05-2025
Mount Savage county's first elementary to earn Green status
CUMBERLAND — An Allegany County school will be honored with a Maryland Green School Award — the first elementary school in the county to achieve the status.
Mount Savage Elementary will join the ranks of 693 Maryland Green Schools, Allegany County Public Schools said Monday. Mountain Ridge High School received program recertification.
The Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education program recognizes schools that include environmental education in its curricula, model best management practices at the school and address community environmental issues. The award signifies a school's commitment to protecting Earth and reducing the school's impact.
'Continued support and participation in the Green School process shows the commitment to environmental literacy within the county,' said Eric Van Slyke, the school system's secondary science supervisor.
Mount Savage students, under the direction of science teacher Elaine Davis, learn to plant fruit trees in a systematic manner. She has also shown them 'how to create pollinator gardens, which are extremely valuable to the environment by providing vital food and shelter for pollinators,' said Principal Laura Holland.
Teacher Samantha Nolan and Melissa Sindy have started a Green School Club for students, who are in the process of making a monarch habitat.
'We are proud to say we are the first elementary school in Allegany County to have achieved Green School status,' Holland said.
