Green Schools Quest
Annual project-based, student-driven challenge
The Green Schools Quest (GSQ) is an annual project-based challenge to PreK-12 schools to devise and implement no/low cost sustainability projects at their school over a six month period of time with the help of a community volunteer who serves as a Green Mentor. Schools document their impact, such as energy savings or increased biodiversity, during the project and submit their project’s process and impact for judging by an impartial panel at the conclusion. Cash Awards and trophies are presented to winning teams in Elementary, Middle and High School Divisions and five Spotlight Awards are presented across the age divisions.
Participate
Schools
To participate in the Green Schools Quest, your school must complete the online registration form. Registration opens annually in the Spring for the upcoming school year and closes on Sept 15. Each school forms a team of students to participate. This team can be a club, class, grade level, or the entire school.
Additionally, each school is required to have one faculty, staff, or parent from the school serve as their team’s sponsor. This sponsor works together with the Green Mentor and student team to identify, investigate, and implement the school’s selected project, and submit final results of their work at the conclusion in Mid-March.
Mentors
Program Schedule
August 31 – Deadline for mentors to register
September 15 – Deadline for schools to register
October through March – Participating schools work with their Green Mentors to engage in six-month-long sustainability projects or monthly sustainability challenges
March 15 – Final Submissions Due
April – Winners announced at the MGGBC Annual Green Schools Event
May – Awards presented
Awards
Cash awards and trophies are presented to winning teams in Elementary, Middle School, and High School Categories. This year’s NEW prize structure:
- High School Veteran ($400)
- High School Rookie ($400)
- Middle School Veteran ($400)
- Middle School Rookie($400)
- Elementary Veteran ($400)
- Elementary Rookie ($400)
Additionally, five Spotlight Awards are presented across the age divisions ($100 each):
- Theme of the Year: Secondary ($200)
- Theme of the Year: Elementary School ($200)
- Community Impact ($200)
- Judges’ Choice ($200)
Winners are determined by a panel of judges using this evaluation rubric.
Projects & Impact
Schools have participated since the program launched in 2013.
Student-driven sustainability projects have been implemented and documented.
Students and staff have directly participated in GSQ projects.
2024-2025 Winning Projects
Elementary
Elementary Rookie - 1st Place
The Idea Center, Lindbergh School District
The Idea Center took on composting and vermicomposting, spending their project time playing with worms who make our earth a healthier place. Their goal was to reduce their carbon footprint by addressing food waste in their cafeteria. The judges
were impressed with how the worm farm not only impacted the school’s practices, but it also influenced how families deal with food waste at home. The project was also heavily steeped in data analysis, and their final presentation made their results
clear and exciting.
Elementary Veteran - 1st Place
Carman Trails Elementary, Parkway Schools
Students at Carman Trails took on a coffee recycling project where they asked families to bring in their coffee grounds and used K-cups to be turned into compost and nutrients for their school garden’s soil. Judges were thrilled to see that their project took their learning about compost outside of the school walls and into the larger community of families and neighbors, and showed that a potentially wasteful product can easily and freely be recycled for the benefit of the campus biodiversity. Judges were also very excited to see the student leadership throughout each phase of this project, from planning to implementation to data analysis.
Middle
Middle School Rookie - 1st Place
Ladue Middle School, Ladue School District
Ladue Middle School’s environmental club, known as the Ladue Planet Protectors, took on a series of mini projects to create an outdoor classroom on their campus. In September, they recruited students to join their club and then spent October establishing four sub-committees to handle a specific area of building planter boxes & creating a composting program, writing a grant for the outdoor classroom and creating designs for the space, collecting and recycling bottle caps, and communicating via social media. Their projects each took on a unique aspect of sustainability, but all had a strong impact on the environment and the students at their school.
Middle School Veteran - 1st Place
Brittany Woods Middle School, University City School District
This unique project started with two free film screenings of the movie “Farming While Black,” a feature film based on the book of the same title that sheds light on how Black farmers dwindled to only 2% of the farming population in the United States, and the plight of food apartheid that separates Black populations from fresh fruits and vegetables. Brittany Woods Middle School sponsored a public viewing of the film, and then invited all schools across Missouri to attend a free field trip to their high school to see the film and participate in a live Q&A with the director of the film. Brittany Woods then took their project further and began supporting local Black farmers by purchasing their produce for their cafeterias, bringing healthier and more sustainable food options to the school while financially contributing to Black land ownership and financial success.
High
High School Rookie - 1st Place
Nerinx Hall High School, Independent
Nerinx took on the industry of fast fashion in a three-pronged approach. They first researched the problems and solutions of fast fashion, then educated their classmates on creative and practical ways to address fast fashion as consumers, and finally created a website to trade clothing amongst the students. The judges were thrilled to see a group of students tackle such a relevant environmental issue and provide such an effective solution that also helped families save money.
High School Veteran - 1st Place
Althoff Catholic High School, Independent
Althoff’s engineering students took on a lighting audit and business proposal, complete with data analysis and a deep discussion of return on investments. Althoff’s students were able to take their project and turn it into several proposals to their administration that demonstrated not only how they could impact their environment by significantly reducing energy costs, but also how they could take those savings and apply them to improvements for their school campus.
Spotlight Awards
Theme of the Year, Secondary: Biodiversity + Wellness, Northeast Middle School
Seventh and eighth graders at Northeast Middle took on the planning and implementation of an outdoor sensory garden to improve campus biodiversity and address students’ mental health. Students analyzed survey results from their peers and teachers to find out how people wanted to use an existing outdoor space. They used the wellness wheel to address physical, emotional, social, intellectual, occupational, and spiritual wellness through their outdoor space. Their plans included all of the senses, and they utilized local experts to fully understand how to engage the senses through their garden.
Focus of the Year, Elementary: Biodiversity + Wellness, Northland Innovation Center
Northland Innovation Center took on three separate and distinct projects this year, each one addressing biodiversity and wellness. On Tuesdays, students built bat houses and researched other solutions to support their local bat population. Their bat houses became the first and only certified bat houses in North Kansas City, and they were able to share their bat support kits with four other elementary schools in the district. On Wednesdays, students focused their efforts on creating a calm space on their campus for outdoor wellness of students, staff, and community members. On Thursdays, students created recycled sculptures that focused on biodiversity awareness. Their sculptures then became a rotating exhibit and moved around the district to all of the elementary schools in order to spread awareness of both recycling and biodiversity in their area.
Judges' Choice: Premier Charter School
Premier Charter School has a large campus with many buildings, and this year they started a Green Team with students excited about sustainability across their entire campus. Students had to apply to join the club and the response was overwhelming! The newly formed club started with a campus walk to assess their building and grounds and determine their goals for the year. They created a website to track their projects, analyze their waste reduction data, support their native plant garden, and reach out to the community with incredibly professional communications! Their book is still a work in progress, but includes their version of the ABCs of sustainability, and lessons learned along the way in Green Club.
Community Impact: Truman Middle School & Crestwood Elementary
This year the judges were so excited to see an elementary and middle school collaborate, that they decided to award the Community Impact award to both schools! As Lindbergh School District goes through exciting changes on their campuses, Truman Middle and Crestwood Elementary have embraced a community conservation action campaign called “Rewiliding the District.” They took on significant physical projects on their school campus to plant native plants and remove invasive species, and they also co-hosted a special event called “Homegrown National Park Night” where students presented their research and knowledge about biodiversity and native plants through poetry, presentations, and hands-on activities that sent families home with native seeds for their own yards. The judges loved the collaboration between two schools and the student leadership that impacted family and community practices.
GSQ Resources
A handful of key resources for the Green Schools Quest are highlighted here. Visit our Resources page to access the full library of resources that support the entire suite of Show-Me Green Schools programs.
GSQ Welcome Letter
Outlines noteworthy items for 2025-2026 and includes links to resources all on one page you can bookmark and keep handy.
2025-2026 Focus of the Year: Water
Each year, a particular theme is designated as the Focus of the Year. Themes are selected to reflect current issues both locally and globally. Schools have the option of following this particular focus to qualify for an additional award. Schools are not penalized if they do not pursue a project related to the Focus of the Year.
Examples of Past GSQ Projects
Project Idea Lists
Visit our Resource Folder to see project ideas. There are resources for projects related to the Focus of the Year as well as lists of projects that are free and require no resources.
Mentor Resources
Includes presentations on Mentor expectations, ways to be involved as a Mentor, and a Mentor checklist.
Evaluation Rubric
Final Submission Materials
View outline of all materials due March 15 here, including Final Submission Form, 5 minute max digital presentation, 1-2 page written report, self-assessment (optional, worth 5 points), and photo releases.
Photo Releases
A photo release must be submitted for every student that appears in the images included in the monthly submission forms. Two options are available: an Individual Photo Release Form to be signed by each student’s parent/guardian, or a Certificate of School Official Photo Release upon which a school official certifies that the school/district has secured and has on file all appropriate image release and permission agreements and consents from parents/guardians of school children who appear in images shared by the school.
Baseline Self-Assessment
This assessment takes about 30 minutes to complete and earns schools points in the judging process. The completed self-assessment may be emailed to info@showmegreenschools.org or directly uploaded into the final submission form. Schools do not have to submit every year to receive points on the rubric. Click here to see when your school submitted its Baseline Assessment. Schools who have submitted in 2023 and beyond will receive points on the rubric.
Rainbow of Sustainability
The Rainbow of Sustainability is a framework for integrating sustainability principles into students’ learning and Green Schools Quest projects. It includes seven sustainability principles: Importance of Place, Interconnectedness, Respect for Limits, Systems Thinking, Cycles, Social Justice, Global Citizenship. Green Schools Quest participants earn extra points for integrating at least two principles into their projects, as outlined in the evaluation rubric.
Whole School Sustainability Framework
The Whole School Sustainability Framework helps guide our work in researched best practices. Schools should familiarize themselves with the Framework and incorporate it into their projects. Green Schools Quest participants earn extra points for integrating the Framework into their final submission.
Show-Me Green Schools Partner Network
The Show-Me Green Schools Partner Network consists of nonprofit and for-profit organizations and programs that can help a school advance in one or more of the green schools pillars. Learn more about the Partner Network here! Access a searchable directory of partners and their services here. If you have resources to share, take our partner survey and become part of the Network.
Questions?
Check out our FAQs below. For additional questions, contact us.
Why participate in the Green Schools Quest?
- The Green Schools Quest’s structure, resources, community connections and friendly competition (including opportunities to win cash awards and trophies!) support student-driven sustainability action at local schools.
- Healthier, sustainable learning and teaching environments are created through collaborative work by students, teachers, and Mentors.
- Schools receive support and guidance from a Green Mentor and connect students to green building careers.
- School and Mentor participants connect with a network of fellow green schools champions to share resources, learn about best practices, and address challenges in undertaking school sustainability initiatives.
- Schools earn recognition for green schools work through an annual celebration and opportunities to win cash awards and trophies.
- Green Schools Quest projects promote environmental stewardship in our communities, improve learning and teaching environments, encourage students to think creatively about sustainability, conserve our natural resources which can result in lower school operating costs, energize sustainable curriculum in local school systems, and engage the community in helping students to green their schools.
What is the annual timeline of the Green Schools Quest?
- Spring: School and mentor registration opens.
- August 31: Mentor registration due.
- September 15: School registration due.
- October through mid-March: Participating schools work with their Green Mentors to plan and implement sustainability projects at their schools. Projects are intended to be no or low-cost and must be NEW initiatives or major expansions of existing initiatives.
- March 15: Final Submission materials due. Submissions are then reviewed by a panel of judges and Division (elementary, middle, high) and Spotlight Award winners are determined.
- April: Winners are announced at the Annual Green Schools Event.
- May: Awards are presented to winning schools.
What schools participate in the Green Schools Quest?
- The Green Schools Quest is open to all PreK-12 schools within the state of Missouri and portions of Southern Illinois (within the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council’s territory.) Interested schools must register to participate by the annual deadline of Sept 15.
- Schools can participate no matter where they are on their sustainability journey, whether they are just getting started or already have green initiatives in place.
- Click here to view a map of past school participants.
Who are the Green Schools Quest mentors?
- Green Schools Quest Mentors (Green Mentors) are volunteers from the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council and Missouri Environmental Education Association that have sustainability expertise. Schools are matched with Green Mentors to help them identify, investigate, and implement a no- to low-cost sustainability project.
- Mentors represent a broad range of professions and include architects, engineers, educators, conservation professionals, project managers, landscape architects, urban planners, sustainability coordinators, retired community members, and more.
What are the Green Mentor responsibilities?
- Mentors should have a passion for creating sustainable learning environments and working with schools.
- Fill out the Mentor Registration Form (Opens in Spring and closes Aug 31 each year.)
- Participate in a Green Schools Quest Orientation.
- Commit 2-5 hours of working with your assigned school each month from October through March. Green Mentors interact and communicate with schools by phone, email, video conferencing, and in-person meetings (as health and safety guidelines allow.)
- Provide guidance, resources, and encouragement as needed to assist students and their team sponsor as they plan and implement their chosen sustainability project.
- Participate in Mentor Meet-Ups and Connect on the Quest activities if available.
- Assist with documentation and preparation of final submission.
- Attend the Annual Green Schools Event if available.
- Submit two quick, online progress surveys.
- Be an active member of Missouri Gateway Green Building Council and/or Missouri Environmental Education Association.
How do I become a Green Mentor?
- Complete the Mentor Registration Form. Once we receive your registration form, our staff will follow-up with additional details and to confirm your participation. Before applying, please review the Green Mentor responsibilities above.
What is included in the final submission for the Green Schools Quest?
- Green Schools Quest participating schools submit a Final Submission that includes the elements outlined here.
- These materials will help us celebrate and highlight your school’s accomplishments at the Annual Green Schools Event, and to determine award winners.
What awards are presented, and how are they determined?
- Cash awards and trophies are presented to winning teams in Elementary, Middle School, and High School Categories.
- High School Veteran ($400)
- High School Rookie ($400)
- Middle School Veteran ($400)
- Middle School Rookie($400)
- Elementary Veteran ($400)
- Elementary Rookie ($400)
Additionally, five Spotlight Awards are presented across the age divisions:
- Theme of the Year: Elementary ($200)
- Theme of the Year: Secondary ($200)
- Community Impact ($200)
- Judges’ Choice ($200)
Winners are determined by a panel of judges using this evaluation rubric.
What is the Rainbow of Sustainability?
- The Rainbow of Sustainability is a framework for integrating sustainability principles into students’ learning and Green Schools Quest projects.
- The Rainbow of Sustainability includes seven sustainability principles: Importance of Place, Interconnectedness, Respect for Limits, Systems Thinking, Cycles, Social Justice, Global Citizenship.
- Green Schools Quest participants earn extra points for integrating at least two principles into their projects, as outlined in the evaluation rubric!
- Click here for more information on the Rainbow of Sustainability.
What is the Whole School Sustainability Framework?
- The Whole School Sustainability Framework guides our work with best practices rooted in research.
- Schools should familiarize themselves with the Framework and incorporate it into their projects.
- Green Schools Quest participants earn extra points for integrating the Framework into their final submission, as outlined in the evaluation rubric!
- Click here for more information on the Whole School Sustainability Framework.