2008 - 2009 Grant Winners
Oakview Elementary School, Simpsonville
Kick the Bag Habit
Oakview’s Earth Savers Club is educating the entire school community about the benefits of using reusable bags for groceries and other purchases. Those families that return a plastic bag use survey are given reusable bags. Any families that took part last year can submit an essay on their experience and receive an insulated shopping bag.
Families that did not participate in the first year of the project are being targeted this year. Because of the benefits of reusable bags, such as reduced pollution and waste, the club hopes that all the school’s families will Kick the Bag Habit this year.
Daniel St. John, Dutch Fork High School student, Irmo
Stop, Look, and Learn - Installation of a Kiosk at the Entrance to Riverfront Park
Daniel will construct and install an information kiosk at the popular Riverfront Park in Columbia. Park rangers will use the kiosk to post information on topics such as litter control, cleaning up after pets and the natural history of the riverside. Daniel is an eleventh grade Life Scout who attends Dutch Fork High School and is an avid kayaker. Daniel is very committed to improving Riverfront Park and protecting water quality in Columbia’s waterways.
Stop, Look and Learn will not be the only way Daniel will benefit the local waterways. He is designing a “litter grabber” to install on one of the main creeks that flows into the Columbia Canal.
Saluda Shoals Park Environmental Education Center and Seven Oaks Elementary School, Columbia
Rain Barrel Irrigation System at the Environmental Education Center at Saluda Shoals Park
Park ranger, Matt Schnabel has designed a rain barrel system to capture runoff from the Education Center. The collected rainwater will then be used to water a native plant garden. Students from Seven Oaks Elementary School will help installing the rain barrels and irrigation hose.
The Rain Barrel Irrigation System will allow Park rangers to teach school groups and education center visitors about water conservation and the prevention of runoff pollution.
South Carolina School for the Blind, Spartanburg
Environmental Enhancements for Non-Visual Learners
The Environmental Enhancements for Non-Visual Learners project will use gardening to initiate wonderful environmental experiences for students who are deaf, blind, or multi-sensory disabled. Blind School students will select and plant the plants – especially those that can be experienced using multiple senses. They will also learn about water conservation principals through proper plant selection and placement, and the use of soaker hoses and mulching.
Walhalla High School, Walhalla
Got Bluebirds On Our Shoulders
The Biology II classes at Walhalla High School want to help more bluebirds live in their community. Students will set up a trail of bluebird nest boxes in several places in their town. They will plant food plots and nesting materials for bluebirds to use. And they will teach the community about bluebirds and their needs for survival. In addition to helping the bluebirds and other local wildlife, Got Bluebirds On Our Shoulders will empower the students as they play a part in improving the environment.
Freedom Montessori School, Rock Hill
Project Go Green @ Freedom Montessori
Project Go Green @ Freedom Montessori is a yearlong plan to reduce the school’s environmental footprint. The plan is made up of activities and actions to help reduce pollution and waste. All of Freedom Montessori’s students, from preschool through the second grade, are involved.
A large variety of items are recycled at the school. And, the classes walk downtown and collect recyclable items from many local businesses too.
Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, Columbia
Native Tree Alley
Fifth graders at Heathwood Hall Episcopal are using trees to improve their local environment in their Native Tree Alley. Trees help the environment by removing pollutants from the air and from stormwater runoff. Native trees are good to plant because they are able to survive well in the local climate. Native trees also provide food and shelter for local wildlife.
Students will create a brochure based on their study about trees and native vegetation. And they will present their findings to the school community.
L.E. Gable Middle School, Spartanburg
Green Bucks- Students Making a Difference
The Green Bucks - Students Making a Difference are doing something about plastic bag waste. These middle school students are making their own reusable shopping bags. The bags will be given to parents and community members.
The students plan to use recycled-content fabric if available. They will follow-up with those who receive the green bags to see how much of a difference they make.
Lowcountry Day School, Pawleys Island
Lowcountry Pond Outdoor Classroom
Improving water quality in the campus pond and creating an outdoor classroom are the two goals of Lowcountry Pond Outdoor Classroom for Pawleys Island Children. The project is a collaboration between twelfth graders from the upper school and fourth graders from the lower school.
The older students will test water quality in the pond. They will evaluate the areas around the pond and suggest ways to reduce runoff entering the pond. They will also clean up litter from in and around the pond and prepare the pond’s banks to be used for environmental education.
The fourth graders will find features of interest around the pond. With help from the twelfth graders they will make nature stops for students and people visiting the pond. Both groups of students will teach other grades at their school about the environment using what they learn working on the pond.
New Directions School, Columbia
Working together for a better tomorrow
Working together for a better tomorrow connects students at New Directions School to the environment. They grow plants and take care of the school’s nature space. The girls learn about the natural world for themselves. And, they share their knowledge with their schoolmates and parents.
This year the students want their campus to be a better habitat for wildlife. They have studied their garden to make sure it provides food and shelter for animals of many kinds –insects, butterflies, birds and others. And Students have asked the New Directions administration to not mow an area near a campus pond to protect that natural habitat for local wildlife
Congratulations to all our Champions. You can make a positive difference for our environment too. Check out the Doing Your Part page for some project ideas.