MADISON, Wis.—This Earth Day, the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) is highlighting a year of progress across its sustainability programs, from solar energy production and expanded composting to new electric vehicles and recognition for students, staff and schools leading the way in environmental stewardship.

"This past year brought real, measurable progress across nearly every area of our sustainability work," said Bryanna Krekeler, MMSD's sustainability manager. "From the energy we're generating to the waste we're diverting, the results reflect our commitment to building a more sustainable future for our students."

MMSD's solar installations produced 6.6 million kWh of electricity over the past year, with key results including:

• More than 3,000 metric tons of CO2e avoided
• More than $137,000 saved in electrical costs
• 463,420 kWh generated by on-site panels at West High School, Robert M. La Follette High School and Lori Mann Carey Elementary School
• $276,498 returned to the district by the IRS through federal clean energy incentives

Looking ahead, MMSD plans to add 1 megawatt of new solar capacity across its Phase 1 referendum school construction sites, expected to come online in 2027.

The district received a $20,000 Urban Forestry Grant to improve tree canopy at Malcolm Shabazz City High School and Mendota Elementary School. As part of the voter-supported 2024 facilities referendum construction work, MMSD relocated three trees at the Black Hawk Middle School/Samuel Gompers Elementary School site and a dozen trees at the Sherman Middle School/Malcolm Shabazz City High School site. Students at Shabazz participated in the relocation effort alongside participants from Operation Fresh Start.

MMSD has also taken several steps this year to reduce landfill waste. The district partnered with Dane County to host its first annual pumpkin composting event, diverting more than 5,000 pounds of pumpkins from the landfill. Thanks to a grant from the Carton Council, the district rolled out districtwide milk carton recycling, achieving roughly 85 percent participation at elementary and middle schools and diverting approximately 8,000 milk cartons from the landfill each day. Composting programs are now active at the following schools, with more coming online soon:

• Nuestro Mundo Elementary School
• Georgia O'Keeffe Middle School
• Lake View Elementary School
• Crestwood Elementary School (coming soon)
• Shorewood Hills Elementary School (coming soon, supported by a recent Dane County grant)

West High School's Green Team also organized an electronics drive that collected approximately 900 pounds of electronic waste, keeping it out of the waste stream.

MMSD has added three electric vehicles to its fleet, bringing the share of all-electric vehicles to 10 percent. The following ten buildings have received a Dane County grant for EV charger installation:

• Samuel Gompers Elementary School/Black Hawk Middle School
• Sherman Middle School/Malcolm Shabazz City High School
• Cherokee Heights Middle School
• Orchard Ridge Elementary School/Akira R. Toki Middle School
• Paul J. Olson Elementary School
• Mendota Elementary School
• Hawthorne Elementary School
• Glenn Stephens Elementary School
• Shorewood Hills Elementary School
• MSCR West

Memorial High School is also receiving a fast charger through Madison Gas and Electric. Fourteen MMSD schools participated in the City of Madison's Walk or Wheel to School event, encouraging students to choose active and low-emission transportation.

The district has also made meaningful progress in reducing embodied carbon, the emissions associated with building construction materials. MMSD improved the embodied carbon footprint of its referendum buildings by 19 percent from the project baseline, and by 51 percent compared to the Carbon Leadership Forum median for K-12 school construction.

The district's sustainability work earned recognition on several fronts this year. Shorewood Hills Elementary School received the 2025 Recycling Excellence Award. Black Hawk Middle School/Samuel Gompers Elementary School and Sherman Middle School/Malcolm Shabazz City High School received the 2025 Climate Champions Award for the design of their new facilities. Lake View Elementary School Principal Nkaujnou Vang-Vue (Administrator of the Year) and West High senior Madeleine Bohn (Student of the Year) were both recently recognized with awards from the Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education, for their leadership in climate education. 

"Every one of these efforts, whether it's a student helping relocate a tree or a school hitting its composting goals, adds up to something bigger," Krekeler said. "We're proud of what we’ve accomplished as a district, and we're just getting started."

For more information about MMSD's clean energy programs and initiatives, visit the Sustainability page of the district’s website.

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About the Madison Metropolitan School District

The Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) is the second-largest school district in Wisconsin, serving more than 25,000 students across 52 schools. The district’s vision is that every school will be a thriving school that prepares every student to graduate ready for college, career and community. With more than 7,000 teachers and staff, MMSD is committed to ensuring the district’s goals and core values are held at the center of its efforts, so students can learn, belong and thrive. For more information, visit mmsd.org.