Case Study

Amy Biehl Community School | Santa Fe, New Mexico

The Amy Biehl Community School, a K–6 school in the public school system of Santa Fe, New Mexico, does more than help students learn how to be environmentally conscious. It helps them live it.

The school was one of 57 K–12 schools from around the country named a Green Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. The winners were honored in a ceremony in Washington, D.C.

It was the first time Daylighting Solutions of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s exclusive distributor and installer for Kalwall® was part of a project that earned this honor. The school, designed by Greer Stafford/SJCF Architecture, incorporates Kalwall skylights and wall systems.

The Amy Biehl School is one of the centerpieces of the Santa Fe public school system and is touted by administrators for its environmental awareness, which includes being LEED certified.

“Kalwall truly is an energy-efficient product,” said Kerry Abbott, president of Daylighting Solutions.

According to the USDE, the Green Ribbon is awarded to schools based on their ability to meet the following criteria: “Reduce environmental impact and costs; improve the health and wellness of schools, students, and staff; and provide environmental education, which teaches many disciplines, and is especially good at effectively incorporating STEM, civic skills, and green career pathways.”

Kalwall systems are prominent in many areas of the school, including the dramatic use of skylights in the main lobby. Skylights are also used in the gymnasium, and the Kalwall wall system helps bring diffuse natural light into the cafeteria.

The wellness benefit of diffuse natural daylight in educational facilities is well documented. In a study by the Heschong Mahone Group, a consultant in the field of energy efficiency in buildings, students in classrooms with the most daylighting progressed 20 percent faster on math tests and 26 percent faster on reading tests over a year period than those with the least daylighting.