INDIANAPOLIS — On Jan. 25, Dr. Suellen Reed, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, launched “Learn Green, Live Green,” a year-long initiative designed to help educators, students, parents and community members discover cost-effective ways to model environmentally responsible behavior inside and outside of the classroom.

To kick off the initiative, Reed and State School Bus Committee members approved Indiana’s first diesel-electric school bus, which will be used daily at Randolph Eastern School Corp.

“This is the right thing to do,” said Cathy Stephen, superintendent of Randolph Eastern School Corp. “Schools need to lead in helping our problems with the environment, with our dependence on oil and in providing safe and healthy riding conditions for our students.”

The bus was converted with new hybrid technology designed by Variable Torque Motors LLC. The cost of the conversion totaled $32,800 and was paid for by a grant from the Randolph County Solid Waste Management District.

To further promote the Learn Green, Live Green initiative, the Indiana Department of Education (DOE) will spotlight a different aspect of the issue each month in 2008 through an interactive Website, www.doe.in.gov/green, while offering a variety of related resources for schools and communities.

Moreover, the DOE is encouraging schools and communities from around the U.S. to share their “green” ideas and projects. They can be e-mailed to Lynelle Miller at lamiller@doe.in.gov.