Harvard
K-12 School in Chicago, IL · 7525 S Harvard Ave · 60620
At a glance
Harvard is a 80,584-square-foot K-12 school at 7525 S Harvard Ave in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1905. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 54 out of 100 (grade D), a site energy-use intensity of 64.1 kBtu/ft² and 419 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 63% of the 365 scored K-12 school buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 54 (band D) |
| Site EUI | 64.1 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 103.5 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 419 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 5.2 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 489,451 kWh |
| Natural gas | 34,932 therms |
| Gross floor area | 80,584 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:251543:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 54 | -19 | 64.1 kBtu/ft² | 419 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 73 | -1 | 59.5 kBtu/ft² | 370 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 74 | +4 | 56.5 kBtu/ft² | 365 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 70 | 59.4 kBtu/ft² | 400 tCO₂e | |
| 2019 | — | — | — | |
| 2018 | 42 | -14 | 78.9 kBtu/ft² | 549 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 56 | -12 | 75.7 kBtu/ft² | 535 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 68 | +15 | 62.9 kBtu/ft² | 489 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 53 | 67.2 kBtu/ft² | 594 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
Own or manage this building? Claim it to correct the record and get compliance alerts.
Location
- Address
- 7525 S Harvard Ave
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60620
- Coordinates
- 41.88059, -87.63071
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does Harvard compare with other K-12 school buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 543 K-12 school buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. Harvard's ENERGY STAR score of 54 compares with an average of 45 across the 365 that report a score; it scores higher than 63% of them and lower than 36%. Its site EUI of 64.1 kBtu/ft² is about 12% below the average of 72.7 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 5.2 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 16% below the group average of 6.2 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 80,584 sq ft, it is about 34% below the average floor area of 121,824 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1905, 38 years earlier than the group's average year built (1943). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 6,548 K-12 school buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 64 and a site EUI of 52.7 kBtu/ft².
How has Harvard's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 9 Chicago disclosures for Harvard, covering report years 2015–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 53 in 2015 to 54 in 2023 (+1 points); its best year on file was 2021, at 74. Site EUI moved from 67.2 kBtu/ft² (2015) to 64.1 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 5% decrease. Reported emissions went from 594 tCO₂e to 419 tCO₂e over the same span (down 29%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 54 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 54 means the building performs better than about 54% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 54 falls in band D — lowest band (1–54). It sits 21 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Chicago, 35% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. Harvard's 64.1 kBtu/ft² across 80,584 sq ft works out to about 5.2 billion Btu (1,514 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 103.5 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 489,451 kWh of electricity and 34,932 therms of natural gas for the year.
Which law requires Harvard to report its energy use?
Harvard reports under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance, the legal basis of the Chicago Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record chicago:251543:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More K-12 school buildings in Chicago
- Sutherland· 80,219 sq ft · score 71 (B)
- Pullman· 80,075 sq ft · score 46 (D)
- Goethe· 80,028 sq ft · score 30 (D)
- Sayre· 79,775 sq ft · score 60 (C)
- Durkin Park· 79,722 sq ft · score 22 (D)
- Garvy· 79,665 sq ft · score 13 (D)
- K-12 School buildings in Chicago· 543 benchmarked
- All Chicago benchmarked buildings· Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
- Most efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Least efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Biggest emitters in Chicago
Frequently asked questions
What is Harvard's energy grade?
Harvard scores 54 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band D, lowest band (1–54) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Harvard use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 64.1 kBtu/ft² (103.5 kBtu/ft² source) across 80,584 sq ft, including 489,451 kWh of electricity and 34,932 therms of natural gas.
What are Harvard's carbon emissions?
Harvard reported 419 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (5.2 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Harvard?
Harvard is at 7525 S Harvard Ave, in Chicago, Illinois 60620. Its coordinates are 41.88059, -87.63071 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Harvard and when was it built?
Harvard has 80,584 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1905 as its year built. It is classed as K-12 school.
Is Harvard covered by the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Chicago Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance.
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About this data
Source: Chicago Energy Benchmarking (Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “Harvard, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/harvard-1c270034 (data as of October 2, 2026).