GRAYSLAKE,Ill. ­— The College of Lake County (CLC) recently announced that its Science & Engineering Building has achieved LEED Platinum, the highest level of certification achievable with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system.

The 42,000-square-foot Science & Engineering Building, which opened in January 2018 at the college’s Grayslake Campus, houses mechatronics, photonics and chemistry classrooms and laboratories. Among its sustainable features are photovoltaic solar panels, green roofs of planted vegetation, a geothermal heating and cooling system and energy efficient fume hoods in chemistry labs, according to David Husemoller, CLC sustainability manager. Other features include LED lighting, and daylight harvesting, in which generous window space in each room gathers natural light, reducing the need for electrical lighting.

“We are honored to earn LEED Platinum certification,” said CLC President Lori Suddick. “As CLC’s first LEED Platinum building, the Science & Engineering Building embodies the college’s commitment to and integration of environmental, economic and social sustainability in its operations and academic programs. The building serves as a living laboratory, inspiring students to learn sustainability practices they can use in their future career fields.”

The Science & Engineering Building is designed to reduce building energy use by 66 percent compared to a standard science building of similar size, Husemoller said. The building’s rainwater recovery system collects rain in an underground tank and uses it for flushing of toilets and urinals, reducing potable water use by 41 percent.

Financing for the $24.9 million building came from the Illinois Capitol Development Board and local funds. “This honor of LEED Platinum is the result of years of planning and dedication with college partners Legat Architects, the Illinois Capital Development Board and others,” said Husemoller.

Before construction, Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI) did an energy model that assessed energy conservation measures and their impact on annual energy use and cost. One result of that study is the south façade with its large windows that provide the appropriate amount of daylight into the labs.

The entire building and most of its interior were analyzed to optimize daylighting, reduce glare, and improve thermal performance. The most interesting and not so obvious element is the self-shading façade concept developed by Legat as early as 2008. The shading solution uses extended mullion caps to control light, heat, and glare at virtually no additional cost, and helps fill the academic spaces with an abundance of natural light.

The team recognized that, in order to attain LEED Platinum for a lab building, an east/west orientation was a must to respond to the sun’s seasonal changes in elevation. When the sun is higher in summer, the exterior shades above the windows act like visors and prevent sunlight from hitting windows to reduce solar heat gain. In winter, labs get solar heat gain because the lower sun shines beneath the shades.

Legat’s Jeffrey Sronkoski, principal and director of higher education, said, “From the very onset of the project, the college’s leaders were intent on making the Science and Engineering Building a model of sustainability. Not only did they accomplish their objective, but they also showed that achieving LEED Platinum for science buildings is no longer the holy grail it once was.”

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The 42,000-square-foot Science Building is designed by architect of record Legat Architects and design architect Brubaker Design, both of Chicago, to achieve LEED Platinum certification using innovative techniques to make a traditionally wasteful building type efficient. The green highlights include 187 photovoltaic solar panels, a 1,500-square-foot green roof that reduces rainwater runoff, a geothermal heat exchange system, a living wall, and rainwater and daylight harvesting systems, reported the Chicago Tribune. The building’s green features are predicted to result in a more than 50 percent reduction in energy consumption, compared to a conventionally designed building.

The building highlights the college’s science and engineering programs, providing all-new laboratory spaces for biology, microbiology, anatomy, physiology and chemistry students. That includes four laser and photonics laboratories — expanding the college’s growing engineering department — and five chemistry laboratories, including one specifically devoted to organic chemistry.

The project is part of a $28.3 million Illinois Capital Development Board project that also includes renovations to 25,000 square feet of existing C Wing space on campus. The old chemistry labs are being vacated from that C Wing space to make way for two new anatomy and physiology labs and new classrooms.

Construction on the building broke ground in March 2015. It’s one of several buildings being constructed or renovated as part of the college’s $148 million master plan, which will improve both the Grayslake and Waukegan campuses.

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Berkeley-based Carolyn Federman, who has worked with the Edible Schoolyard Project for 15 years, created the Charlie Cart, a portable kitchen that helps bring cooking equipment into the nation’s public schools. Federman partnered with Brian Dougherty of Berkeley’s Celery to Design — with support from renowned chefs, authors and food activists Alice Waters and Michael Pollan — to develop the device. Pittsburg Unified School District, Ventura Unified School District and Richmond Unified School District all agreed to participate in the pilot program, which launched earlier this year.

The moveable kitchen features three workstations and includes an induction cooktop and small oven, as well as a rinsing station with a hand-pump faucet and a drought-friendly greywater recovery system. It also offers other kitchen tools such as mixing bowls, cutting boards and utensils for 30 students.

“We [need] to educate the next generation about the connections between food, health and the environment if we hope to solve the major challenges of our times,” noted Pollan in the project’s Kickstarter campaign. “The Charlie Cart is the right idea at the right time.”

The portable kitchen (currently priced between $6,000 and $8,000) includes sample recipes and lesson plans tied to Common Core standards, based on Federman’s experience with the Edible Schoolyard Project, as well as online video training to get kids cooking in the classroom. It is also designed to move easily between classrooms and can work inside and outside in a school garden or on the playground, which makes it easier to get more students involved.

Charlie Carts could also help expand programming in schools that don’t have funding for a full cooking curriculum. Even Berkeley Unified School District’s notable cooking and gardening program has experienced cutbacks in recent years. “All students should have the opportunity to learn about food,” Federman told Edible East Bay. “Learning to cook is a fundamental life skill. And the cart is such a fun and inspiring way to engage children in the process.”

The Charlie Cart Project team hopes to bring the cost of the unit down as they build volume and develop partnerships with outside funders.

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