KTKA

The exclusive Sidwell Friends School in Washington D.C. has a new addition that school administrators are proud of.

"It has a dramatically reduced use of energy and water, extensive use of recycled materials, reclaimed materials, and locally-sourced materials," said Assistant Head of School Mike Saxenian.

The school says the $21 million cost is 15 percent higher than conventional construction.

"Just being in the building really just gives you sort of a wake-up call because every aspect of it is contributing to the world," one student said.

"The kids really do understand the building, and we trained 28 of our eighth-graders to be tour guides," Principal Sally Selby said.

5 percent of the middle school's eneregy comes from solar panels.

The solar inverters take the energy from the solar panels and convert it from direct current to alternating current.

"I really like the windows and how, when you open them. They have sensors that turn off the air-conditioning to save energy," one student said.

Vegetation on the roof will help control rainwater runoff:

"We planted some lettuce and some herbs, which we'll hopefully use in the cafeteria in the future," one student said.

"Sidwell Friends is a wonderful demonstration of how incredibly beneficial green schools can be for the learning environment," said Michelle Moore, with the U.S. Green Building Council.

The U.S. Green Building Council gave its highest rating to the school.

"We recognize projects that really go above and beyond," Moore said.

Students hope their school will show other schools and other buildings to ways to be more environmentally friendly.