Return to Objective 1: Curriculum & Instruction

As part of our commitment to sustainability, we encourage members of our school community to use reusable water bottles in lieu of single use disposable paper cups. There is a water cooler in every classroom and in all major areas frequented by students and staff.

Since our school's founding in 2008, we have listed a reusable water bottle as a required supply on our annual school supply list for every grade level. In fall 2019, we provided a reusable water bottle at no cost to all students who did not have one of their own.

Through a recent Green, Healthy, Smart Challenge grant award, we were able to purchase sets of silverware for some of our classrooms. In February 2020, we made the decision to purchase additional sets for the remaining classrooms, in order to reduce more broadly the use of plastic cutlery from the cafeteria.

To reduce the use of disposable name tags, the Green Committee secured reusable volunteer ID badges for parents and caregivers who volunteer in the school on a regular basis. Office staff gives regular volunteers a reusable badge to use while they are here and volunteers return their badges before they leave, for use another time.

To minimize waste and cut down on paper usage, several frequently used forms are now available online only:

We frequently host visitors interested in connecting with our community and learning more about our model. In lieu of purchasing ready made coffee in wasteful disposable containers, our development team committed to making coffee in-house. We now brew our own coffee with a reusable filter, and use reusable mugs, water glasses, and plates. We also use pitchers for cream and dispensers for sugar, instead of single-use packets, and purchased water pitchers to use in place of single-use plastic water bottles.

From application through to notification, Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School's enrollment lottery process is entirely paperless. Prospective families submit applications online and receive lottery result notifications via email. With 1,000+ applications for year, this contributes significantly to our sustainability initiatives, in addition to ensuring an accurate and efficient process.

Our Business Manager sources contracts and services agreements with vendors who have green practices and protocols. Agreements and contracts are reviewed annually for compliance.