Patrick Henry Downtown Academy Elementary School in St. Louis is located in a neighborhood considered a food desert because of the lack of grocery stores. In an effort to help students eat healthy, the school provides 24-hour student access to its garden where students prep, plant, tend, and harvest all produce, cook it as a class and eat it at school. During harvest, students receive fresh fruit and vegetable packages to take home to their family members, who, themselves, are invited outside of school hours to pick any vegetables they want.

For their efforts, the school was recently named a 2023 Green Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education. The award recognized 41 schools, school districts and universities across the country that have made efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, improve health and wellness, and ensure effective sustainability education.

In addition to Patrick Henry, four other schools in districts represented by the Council of the Great City Schools were recognized: Browning Elementary School in Milwaukee; Park Forest Elementary Creative Sciences & Arts Magnet School in East Baton Rouge, La.,; Cardinal Valley Elementary in Lexington, Ky.,; and Francis L. Cardozo Education Campus in Washington, D.C. And Orange Public County Schools in Orlando, Fla., had three schools honored: Oak Ridge High School, Arbor Ridge School, and Stone Lakes Elementary School.

In addition, Boston Public Schools was a 2023 U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School District Sustainability Awardee for its investments and progress in reducing lead in drinking water, improving indoor air quality, and implementing outdoor teaching and learning and climate change education.