News Release

Santiago Canyon College Wins Green Colleges Leadership Award

(Orange, CA)—On November 2, at the Green California Schools and Community Colleges Summit, Santiago Canyon College (SCC) was awarded a Green Community Colleges Leadership Award in the category of energy. The first major statewide green schools event, the Summit was created to support green programs in the nation’s largest K-12 and higher education systems. The tenth annual Green California Schools and Community Colleges Summit took place at the Pasadena Convention Center on November 2-3 and the Leadership Awards reception was held on November 2, with an SCC representative in attendance. The awards were established by the Summit Advisory Board to honor outstanding accomplishments on California’s K-14 campuses.

SCC was recognized for its practices in designing and constructing new buildings as well as its efforts to retrofit existing buildings to increase energy efficiency. "Everyone at Santiago Canyon College is extremely proud of this award as it comes in the context of our larger effort to be environmentally conscious,” says SCC Interim President John Hernandez, “We strive to build energy-efficient buildings and have worked extensively to retrofit our older buildings. Santiago Canyon College is doing its part to have a positive effect on our community and world, and we thank the Green California Schools and Community Colleges Summit for recognizing our efforts.”

The newest building at SCC is the 90,000-square-foot Humanities Building, which among its other green features has an energy efficient lighting system, drought-tolerant landscaping, and an exterior designed for low maintenance. Both the Humanities Building and the new Gymnasium feature roof coating that prevents unwanted heat buildup and reduces costs. In accordance with the Rancho Santiago Community College District Sustainability Plan, SCC staff have also been trained in efficient operations of all campus facilities in order to decrease energy use and decrease expenditures.

SCC recently completed an interior lighting LED retrofit, which was performed in multiple buildings across campus. As a result of this retrofit SCC has seen a reduction of more than 550,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) and 203 kilowatts (kW) with an energy bill reduction of over $115,000 annually. SCC has updated the HVAC control system in its Science Center and has re-commissioned the building for more energy-efficient operation. In addition, occupancy sensors have been installed to control the speed of fume hood exhaust fans based on building occupancy, and the sequence of operations has been modified for various mechanical equipment, including air handlers, boilers, and fume hood equipment, to improve operations. These retro-commissioning improvements have previously earned SCC a California Community Colleges Board of Governors Energy and Sustainability Award. Building D has been retrofitted with an energy-efficient chiller and new system for supplying and reheating warm water, while Building C has also been retrofitted for more efficient cooling.

About Santiago Canyon College
Santiago Canyon College (SCC) serves about 14,000 students each semester. The college prepares students for transfer to four-year institutions and careers, and provides courses for personal and professional development, as well as customized training for business and industry. The college is recognized for its adult education program which keeps the working adult—and senior—in mind by offering flexible schedules, and community locations. Serving the residents of Anaheim Hills, Orange, Tustin, and Villa Park, SCC is one of two comprehensive colleges under the auspices of the Rancho Santiago Community College District. Visit http://www.sccollege.edu to learn more.

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Contact: Judy Iannaccone

Phone: (714) 480-7503

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