Schools looking to go green can now enlist Ford Motor Company’s help in welcoming sustainability into the classroom. The automaker is joining forces with ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” on Educate to Escape—a green school makeover campaign. As part of the campaign, Ford is sponsoring a nationwide contest that awards one lucky K-12 school with an eco-friendly makeover up to $250,000. Ford’s Educate to Escape initiative launched earlier this month, and schools will have their shot at the makeover until May 18, 2008.

Students, parents, community members, school staff, and teachers are encouraged to nominate schools for Ford’s Educate to Escape contest by submitting an online survey to www.educatetoescape.com. Entrants will be asked a series of essay questions about why their school deserves an eco-friendly makeover. The winner will be announced in June 2008, and the makeover completed later in the summer. In addition to the Educate to Escape green school makeover contest, entrants will have the opportunity to win a 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid in the Educate to Escape sweepstakes. To enter and for more information on the contest and sweepstakes, including official rules, go to www.educatetoescape.com

“We integrated eco-friendly renovations into our entire season of makeovers on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” said Paige Hemmis of ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” “In the long run, thinking green reduces the amount of energy used as well as the costs associated with running old or inefficient appliances. Schools minding their money due to budget cuts may find that integrating eco-friendly renovations will cut their costs dramatically over time.”

While green improvements made to the winning school will be largely contingent upon the winning essay and specific school needs, some eco-friendly solutions may include energy-efficient appliances, athletic fields made of organic/sustainable materials, vegetation roofing, solar paneling, Energy Star lighting and insulation, programmable thermostat and triple-pane windows.

“Ford maintains a commitment to lessen our overall impact on the planet with our products and our manufacturing plants,” said Connie Fontaine, Multicultural and Experiential Marketing Manager, Ford Motor Company. “Our hope is the Educate to Escape campaign will encourage schools to think about what ‘green’ additions or changes can be made to their own campuses.”

“This campaign is a wonderful extension of our on-going partnership with Ford. Our Extreme Home families have benefited from Ford’s generosity, now so will a larger community" said John Sadler, SVP, Integrated Marketing and Sales, ABC.