Tree Canopy Coverage
The dashboard displays the percentage of school grounds covered by tree canopy for each individual school. This percentage shows how much of the school's grounds are shaded by trees. Trees provide natural shade, reduce heat, filter air pollution, and make school grounds more comfortable for children. Schools with more trees tend to have cooler playgrounds and better air quality. The tree canopy coverage percentage is one of the environmental indicators used to calculate the Green Score. If coverage is low, tree planting could be a great project for parent groups or student environmental clubs.
Data Sources
Urban Greenness Across K-12 Schools in the United States
Velásquez Camacho, L. F., Singh, P., van Doorn, N., Roman, L., & Ossola, A. (2025). Urban greenness across K-12 schools in the United States. [Data set]. Zenodo. School-level tree canopy coverage data reflecting environmental quality and natural shading around school properties. This is one of the core environmental indicators used in the Green Grade.