Lessons about the natural world and caring for our environment teach students about responsibility and teamwork. They can develop a deeper understanding of mathematical and scientific processes by studying plants and wildlife in our redeveloped schoolyard.

Our reputation for environmental education and sustainable school practices is growing and includes honors from Washington, D.C., to Madison to Milwaukee.

• Hawthorne earned the U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools award in July 2024. Only 41 K-12 schools earned the green ribbon that year.
• Principal Shantee Jude-Williams earned green principal of the year honors from the Green Schools Consortium of Milwaukee in 2023.
• Green & Healthy Schools Wisconsin acknowledged our school in March 2024 with Sugar Maple status, a sweet recognition for our efforts to nurture healthy students and sustainable community.

Our staff planted the seeds for sustainable school operations and environmental education years before these awards.

• Building a network of STEM and outdoor education partners who welcome students for field trips.
• Bringing the outdoors into our classrooms so students can study the water cycle, native trees, and the four seasons.
• Replacing old appliances, lights, and windows with energy- and cost-saving alternatives.

Growing Knowledge

Our academic program combines standards-based lessons, hands-on activities, and field trips. Hawthorne teachers weave environmental exploration into art and physical education classes, STEM lessons, and research and reading assignments in our Library Media Center. Christina Hill earned educator of the year honors from Green Schools Consortium of Milwaukee in 2023 for “greening” the curriculum for our second and third graders. Teachers bring air-quality data into lesson plans through the Love My Air program. Students learn how air quality affects their health and how their actions can contribute to cleaner air at school and in the community.

Redeveloped Schoolyard

Teachers, students, and families drafted a list of priorities and play equipment for our new schoolyard in 2020. Working alongside partners at the environmental education nonprofit Reflo, our school’s Green Team took shape, raised funds, and broke ground in 2022.

Our redeveloped schoolyard opened in 2022 and includes:

• Outdoor classroom and performance area
• Replacing 36,000 square feet of asphalt with green space
• New tot lot, play surfaces, and structures for gaga ball, soccer, mindfulness moments, and more
• Native plants and trees in our pollinator and vegetable gardens, and throughout the schoolyard
• Green infrastructure, like bioswales and cisterns, can capture and redirect stormwater — up to 84,000 gallons per rain event.

The schoolyard thrives thanks to the Hawthorne Green Team, who won the award for most engaged green team from the Green Schools Consortium of Milwaukee in 2023. Teachers and students from second to fifth grade tend to our school gardens and still find time for urban birding and other outdoor enrichment during after-school team meetings.

Building Best Practices

We keep our drinking water clean and improve indoor air quality by carefully monitoring potential pollutants inside the school building. We use power-saving settings on classroom computers and monitor energy usage to reduce utility costs and Hawthorne’s carbon footprint. These efforts earned Hawthorne’s Carey Sinclair most supportive building engineer honors from Green Schools Consortium of Milwaukee in 2023.

Family and Community Care

Families and neighbors support this work as classroom volunteers and members of our School Engagement Council. School events and celebrations are focused, fun opportunities to learn about programs and partnerships that keep Hawthorne School thriving. Please grow with us.