Back to School!
Back to Growing Green Schools!
Text and photos by Carey Murphy
Urbana is now home to the highest number of certified Maryland Green Schools in Frederick County. Through partnerships with our local community, students and teachers are forging a path toward sustainability for us all.
To protect our ecosystems and prepare communities for a changing climate, Frederick County set a goal of certifying all schools as Maryland Green Schools, a program that has been active for over 20 years in other parts of the state. By focusing on outdoor education, hands-on projects, and cross-curricular activities, Green Schools have been shown to improve students' physical and mental health, raise test scores, save money, and prepare students for future careers.
Jeff Esko, a retired 5th grade teacher, leads an archaeology lesson on Earth Day at the Urbana Elementary school fossil wall and rock garden, part of the Great Heron wetlands.
This past year, Urbana Elementary joined Urbana High and Sugarloaf Elementary in a trifecta of schools empowering environmental stewards. Urbana Middle School's certification is in progress. For over 7 years, Elizabeth McCook and students at Urbana High set the tone for the county by launching new initiatives that support the environment. With Joe Richardson of Mountainside Education, they started the Lunch out of Landfills composting program and met with lawmakers in Annapolis to advocate for laws and funding to reduce food waste. In 2023, Urbana High started the county's first Youth Climate Institute chapter, which certifies students as Climate Ambassadors through education and action. The Green Team of over 100 students also organizes Swap and Shops, manages classroom recycling, and hosts campus cleanups. This spring, students identified and labeled trees in a reforested area near the Urbana library to share how they benefit our ecosystems and our own health.
In 2025, Sugarloaf Elementary was awarded their Green Schools flag and continued their sustainable practices this year with a focus on clean water. The fifth grade Green Team, mentored by Taryn Moreno and Brody Rinehart, learned about the quality of their local watersheds and taught others how pollution, including pet waste, is carried by stormwater and deposited into our waterways. At their annual STEAM event in the spring, they used an EnviroScape model to demonstrate how water flows in our watersheds. Collaborating with the county's Department of Energy and Environment, the Green Team placed metal markers on storm drains in the Stone Barn neighborhood to remind residents that only water belongs in the drain, because they empty into nearby creeks. In addition, they weeded their school's native plant gardens, grew vegetables and plants in their Tower Garden, conserved energy, and managed recycling initiatives.
At Urbana Elementary, Johanna O'Branovich leads the Green School initiative. To encourage place-based learning, she organized lessons for the entire school to enjoy Earth Day outside. This year, special guest and archaeologist Jeff Esko shared details about the school's fossil wall and rock garden. To get the outdoor classroom ready for learning, volunteers from 20 organizations that make up IREM removed a large dumpster's worth of invasive plants. Meanwhile, the school's Green Team of 3rd through 5th graders studied insects, learned about the iNaturalist community science tool, planned an earth-themed spirit week with daily announcements about wildlife, built insect hotels, and organized a clothing drive.
Congratulations to all three of these schools and the other sixteen Green Schools in Frederick County. Please help keep this momentum going by following your students' lead at home!
Mobilize Frederick, a non-profit Green Center, provided supplies and materials to all three Urbana schools and supported them through the certification process by assisting with student action projects, leading lessons, and connecting community partners.
Carey Murphy is Mobilize Frederick's Education Director and a long-time resident of the Villages of Urbana, where she volunteers as Chair of the Grounds and Physical Assets Committee. She can be reached at carey.murphy@mobilize-frederick.org.
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Photo, top of page: Community volunteers with the Institute for Real Estate Management clear invasive plants to prepare the Great Heron Wetlands for outdoor learning.
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A Sugarloaf Elementary School Student places a 'No Dumping Drains to Creek' Marker in the community.
