Tornado-Ravaged School Wins Synthetic Turf Field Award

A tornado-ravaged high school in Greensburg, Kan., and an elementary school in an economically challenged area of Philadelphia are the grand prize winners of the Synthetic Turf Council's 2010 Search for the Real Field of Dreams contest. The annual awards program recognizes synthetic turf sports fields and community parks that have enhanced their communities.

In May 2007, an eight-man football (pictured) opened on the campus of what would become the new Kiowa County School, a $50 million K-12 LEED Platinum facility that was dedicated last month. The field hosts high school and youth games, and reports indicate that Greensburg's population is slowly returning to pre-tornado numbers.

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Meanwhile, the days of students populating the nurse's office at John Wister Elementary School in Philadelphia with scrapes and other injuries appear to be over. Built with grant money, the school's synthetic turf playground field has transformed a barren, concrete schoolyard in a section of the city in which 98 percent of all residents are African-American and 99 percent suffer economic hardship. School officials report that student test scores have increased by 20 percent, and parents have become more involved in school and student life.

Other fields and parks honored by the Synthetic Turf Council include:• William Dick School, Philadelphia• Tri-Valley High School, Dresden, Ohio • City of Lakeland (Fla.) Parks & Recreation Department for Common Ground Park• City of Wauwatosa (Wis.) for Hart Park • Geneva (Ohio) Area Recreational, Educational, Athletic Trust (GaREAT) Sports Complex

For full profiles of all winners, click here.