Field House

Our Field House is home to an open court, weight room, yoga room, and more. It was also the first net-zero LEED Platinum-certified school building in the country. Accessible 365 days a year, it’s a place for students to play sports, exercise, wax their skis, repair bikes, or simply sit and talk.

Putney students revel in the joy of being active.

Since its founding, physical activity and outdoor exercise have been integral to The Putney School experience. Indeed, “the hard stretching of oneself” was one of the fundamental principles of founder Carmelita Hinton, and students continue to find that the more physically active they are, the more their energy for study and work increases.

Field House Amenities

An open court for basketball, volleyball, and other court sports.

A weight-training room and yoga/fitness room that can also be used for aerobics, stretching, and sports conditioning.

A ski waxing room with access to Putney’s groomed trails. This space is used for bike storage and repair in the off season.

Separate locker rooms and showers for students and faculty.

Office space for Putney’s athletic director and staff.

A community space where students can gather for informal meetings, conversation, and socializing.

Thoughtfully designed with sustainability in mind, the Field House represents the best of Putney values.

Our Field House’s Green Features

Built in 2008, our net-zero Field House produces more energy than it consumes, while giving our students much needed space for exercise and socializing. It was designed as a LEED Platinum building, the highest designation achievable in energy conservation. It serves as a living laboratory for environmental sustainability through its use of solar panels, photovoltaics, hyper-insulation, composting toilets, and an air-source heat pump.

 

There are only a handful of schools in America that can offer a building so green, so efficient, and so inspiring.

Details

  • Exceeds local zoning open space requirements
  • Stormwater design promotes infiltration, captures and treats runoff beyond national standards
  • White reflective roof to reduce “heat island” effect
  • Significant light pollution reduction with effective selection of interior and exterior lighting fixtures
  • Highly-reflective site concrete to reduce heat island effect of site improvements
  • Collaborative design on 16,800 sq. ft. with students and faculty, board of trustees, design team, and construction manager
  • Students integrated into process throughout design

Details

  • No irrigation
  • Low-water fixtures and composting toilets minimize water usage

Details

  • Reduced carbon footprint by 100%
  • 25-year carbon dioxide reduction of 1,077,516 pounds, sulfur dioxide reduction of 4,564 pounds, and nitrogen oxides reduction of 1,802 pounds
  • Projected net-zero energy on yearly basis with 36.8 KW of solar-tracking photovoltaics in field next to building
  • Energy usage modified to be approximately 45% of that allowed by Vermont Energy Code
  • All lighting on occupancy and daylighting sensors
  • All ventilation on occupancy and carbon dioxide sensors
  • Air to air heat pump system selected is more efficient than current ground source systems
  • Ground source at +/- 2.3 COP (coefficient of performance)
  • Air to air heat pump at +/- 2.7 COP
  • Heat recovery on building exhaust air
  • Automatic natural ventilation (windows on automatic night time flushing)
  • Building envelope
  • R20 under slab insulation, R20 foundation wall insulation, R45 walls and R60 roofs
  • R5 fiberglass windows (triple insulated, low-e, operable units—U value of 0.19)
  • Sky lighting for approximately 40% of floor area
  • Detailing to avoid air infiltration and thermal bridging

Details

  • 20% fly ash in concrete reduces carbon footprint on a pound per pound basis
  • Construction waste management with 75% diverted from disposal
  • More than 50% of wood Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified (sustainably harvested)
  • Use of 20% recycle materials such as steel used in steel framing and light-gauge wall framing
  • Low or nearly no VOC (volatile organic compound) paints, finishes, and adhesives used throughout project
  • Local materials such as site-harvested wood used in public areas
  • No chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Details

Keep Exploring

Sustainability

From our solar powered cabins to our net zero LEED Platinum certified Field House, sustainability is a way of life. Many of the amazing initiatives here are simply part of

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Athletics and Recreation

We believe students learn better by doing, and by living a healthier lifestyle. Through a wide variety of choices offered in the afternoon activities program, you can join a casual

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Outdoor Experiences and Stewardship

With our 600 acres nestled in the eastern foothills of the Green Mountains, Putney students spend a lot of time outside. We weave our beautiful natural surroundings into our classrooms

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Fundamental Beliefs

The Putney School was founded in 1935 by Carmelita Hinton, a progressive education pioneer. She distilled the school’s philosophy into nine fundamental beliefs that continue to shape the ethos of

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