Kudos to those on the board for Savannah Country Day School! The construction of a new building was decided to be ‘Green’, by making the addition environmentally-friendly. This building will be the first school in Savannah and the second in Georgia to be LEED certified – meaning it meets the standards set by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (through the USGBC – US Green Building Council).

These standards mean that the building will be built using lower fume paints, coatings, adhesives, sealants, and carpets as well as using recycled materials and water-saving plumbing.

Helping the funding for this school was a $3 million anonymous donation. Groundbreaking on the construction will begin in March, and the school is scheduled to open in August 2008.

A HUGE Kudos to Savannah Country Day for being a leader in environmental change and showing Savannah that it is amazing and fruitful to be better stewards of our coast.

In addition to my job with TCCi, I am also a map maker, or GIS Analyst. While I was doing some map making the other day, I had the opportunity to meet with a student from a local NASA program – NASA DEVELOP.

NASA’s website describes this program as “…a NASA Science Mission Directorate Applied Sciences Program that fosters human capital development to extend NASA science research to local communities. Students demonstrate to community leaders prototype applications of NASA science measurements and predictions addressing local policy issues. The activities are student led, with advisors and mentors from NASA and other partner organizations.”

I describe it as a great way for hard-working, intelligent students in the Savannah area to gain experience with a great government organization and make a name for our community (and themselves, of course)! The student I met stated that his team is working on a coastal management project, which is directly related to NASA’s 12 Applications of National Priority. I had the opportunity to explain some basic GIS to him and heard more about what his team will be working on.

I found an article today on WTOC’s website regarding two local SCAD broadcast design students who applied for a contest showcasing a Superbowl Commercial Design. They were on CBS and were one of the final five finalists in the whole competition! Congratulations to them; that must of been such a cool experience. SCAD students have such talent and it’s great to see them in the national spotlight! The link to the story is HERE; the video link is underneath the title. Again, congratulations guys!