South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

Take Action Today Awards

Each year, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control’s (DHEC) Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling (Office) recognizes innovative and successful school recycling, composting, waste reduction and reuse programs as well as a recycling teacher of the year. The 2011-2012 award winners were recognized at the Take Action Today Workshop on Wednesday, June 20, 2012 at the Medallion Center in Columbia.

Take Action Today Award Winners

The following schools were recognized for their outstanding recycling efforts during the 2011-2012 school year.

Outstanding School Waste Reduction
or Reuse Program Award

The Outstanding School Waste Reduction or Reuse Program Award was presented to A.J. Whittenberg Elementary School in Greenville County. The school was recognized for its multiple efforts to reduce the amount of waste generated on campus and reuse whenever possible.

Reducing waste is not something that only gets taught in the classroom, but instead is a part of the culture of the school. Much of the artwork and other decorations in the school come from repurposed materials. Reused items at school include plastic bottles becoming herb gardens, CDs for nametags or decorations, redecorated coffee cans and shoe boxes to hold pencils and crayons, repurposed plastic boxes to store vocabulary and math cards as well as paper from the ends of printer rolls that become banners and bulletin board backdrops.

Second- and third-graders are all issued a tablet, allowing students to download their assignments and work on the computer -- making many of these classrooms nearly paperless. Another example of waste reduction and reuse is the effort to get students to use reusable water bottles and lunch containers. 

The school’s conservation ethics are shared with the parents of the students. In fact, some materials are sent to school from home so that they can be reused or repurposed instead of being thrown in the trash. 

Back to Top

Outstanding School Composting Program Award

The Outstanding School Composting Program Award was presented to Chapman Elementary School for successfully starting and managing its composting effort on school grounds. The school enlisted the help of its students, teachers and an exceptional maintenance worker to help with composting in the cafeteria every day. The composting program was initiated by the school's environmental club that is comprised of fourth- and fifth-grade students.

Chapman Elementary School composted about 2,000 pounds of food scraps that would have otherwise gone to the landfill. The soil created from composted food went into the garden beds where vegetables were planted. The environmental club also shared its success with the community. The club held an environmental awareness night where members highlights their progress and success through discussions and informational posters.

Back to Top

Outstanding School Environmental Club Award

The Outstanding School Environmental Club Award was presented to Moore Intermediate School. Its environmental club -- comprised of fifth- and sixth-graders -- started several projects that benefited the school.

First, the club hosted a morning news show and provided environmental tips to students and faculty about ways to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle. The club also started a "drink pouch brigade" that collected used juice pouches and shipped them to TerraCycle -- a company that reuses them in innovative products. During the 2011-2012 school year, the brigade collected 100,000 empty juice pouches.

The club also initiated a "tap-n-stack" program in which students tap unwanted food off  Styrofoam trays in the cafeteria and then stack them before putting them into the trash. This effort reduced the amount of trash bags taken to the dumpster by 40 percent.

Finally, the environmental club partnered with the school district’s career center to nurse plants in the greenhouse and then place them classrooms to improve indoor air quality.

Back to Top

Outstanding School Recycling Program Award

The Outstanding School Recycling Program Award was given to Green Seas Floyd Elementary School for a successful recycling program and excelling at material collection as well as student involvement.

This school recycled 33,550 pounds of paper, plastic and metal in six months during the 2011-2012 school year. They recycled more than any other elementary school in Horry County during a Talkin’ Trash contest. The school was awarded four computers to help increase student achievement through technology. The school saved more than 16 tons of material from landfill disposal. The school's hard work also has inspired others in its community to recycle. Each month that this school won the "Talkin' Trash" contest, a student recycler appeared on the local television station with a recycling tip that reached all residents in the county.

The school also started collecting more recyclables to increase its recycling rate. It now accepts inkjet cartridges and telephone books and plans to start a composting program soon.

Back to Top

Recycling Teacher of the Year

The Outstanding Recycling Teacher of the Year Award was presented to Cindy Lilly from Ocean Bay Middle School in Horry County. For several years, she has inspired her students, peers and neighboring schools by reducing waste, recycling and composting. Her contagious enthusiasm has spread from her classroom, throughout the school and into the community. Lilly helped the school to implement a recycling program that has significantly reduced the amount of waste being disposed of in landfills. Last year, the school recycled about 20,000 pounds of plastic bottles, metal cans, cardboard and newspaper. She started a “green team” at the school and -- with their help -- started a composting program.

Lilly also started the "Breathe Better" program to discourage car and bus idling at school. Before kicking off the program, about 40 percent of the cars and buses were idling during student pick-up. After the green team educated everyone about the program, NONE of the cars and buses were idling. The estimated fuel savings per week for school buses were almost 18 gallons.

To celebrate Earth Day, Lilly involved three other local schools to host a festival. Partnering with the Horry County Solid Waste Authority, PalmettoPride and other organizations, the festival welcomed about 250 to 500 people for performances and activities.

Lilly and her green team also started a rain garden project. Students were involved in the garden's construction and taught about its purpose. Students also maintained the garden's plants throughout the school year.

Back to Top