District Wide Innovation... the "Blach Approach"

Almond Elementary School (Modernization, 2003)
Springer Elementary School (Modernization, 2003)
Oak Elementary School (2008)
Gardner Bullis Elementary School (2008) 
Two of the largest campuses in the district, the renovations of Almond Elementary School and Springer Elementary School in 2003 made a considerable impact on lowering the District’s overall energy use.  These projects installed individual all-electric heat pumps at each classroom, rather than the centralized gas/electric split systems used at Blach Intermediate School.

Santa Rita Elementary School (2005)
2005 School Construction News/DesignShare Citation Award
2006 American Institute of Architects California (AIACA) Honor Award 
PG&E Savings by Design Energy Efficiency Integration Award
The existing kindergarten building was repurposed to become a new administration building and existing classrooms were modernized with reflective cool roof material , an improved building envelope, operable clerestory windows, and new, individual all-electric HVAC systems  with intelligent controls to provide comfortable, energy efficient classrooms for student learning. New kindergarten classroom buildings were built utilizing similar passive design strategies and energy efficient systems.

Loyola Elementary School (2007)
2007 CHPS Green Apple Award
This major modernization and expansion project qualified for and won state grants for upgrades for energy efficiency through both Proposition 39 and PG&E Savings by Design  programs. Carbon-friendly in its building reuse, the existing and new buildings were designed with reflective cool roof material, maximum daylight, and individual all-electric HVAC systems  in each classroom integrated with the operable clerestory windows to increase energy efficiency and provide for optimal air quality.

Egan Junior High School (2017– 19) 
Egan Junior High School was modernized in 2002 by a different design firm while Blach Intermediate School underwent its original renovation. The District had compared the energy performance of the two similar campuses campus and realized the energy use at Egan was considerably higher even though Energy Code compliant at the time. When the roofing failed on the largest of the classroom buildings in 2017, the District replaced the roofing with a reflective cool roof, augmented insulation in the building envelope, and installed new all-electric individual heat pump systems at each classroom in lieu of a centralized gas system,  implementing the same strategies used at Blach Intermediate School. The final upgrades brought the building baseline energy use from 84.6 EUI down to 51.1 EUI, which in turn lowered the overall campus energy use. 

Covington Elementary School (2022)
Covington Elementary School was modernized prior to Blach Intermediate School by a different design firm. The HVAC systems originally installed on the classroom buildings are nearing the end of their useful life, so the District has contracted with Gelfand Partners to oversee the modernization project which is addressing the classroom buildings only at this time. The scope of the project includes replacement of the roofing material with reflective cool roof material, augmented building insulation and new, more efficient all-electric heat pump HVAC systems to replace the older, comparatively inefficient electric systems originally installed.