Thomas Jefferson High School Environmental Science Students Develop School Recycling Program

Thomas Jefferson High School students enrolled in Mrs. Cook’s Environmental Science classes were challenged by district administrators to create a recycling program for the high school. Mrs. Cook was eager to get her class involved in more project-based learning opportunities, and her students embraced the idea of developing a recycling program to encourage environmental stewardship. Students collaborated in class to lay the framework for the initial pilot program. The recycling program had to be cost-effective and easily maintained. Environmental Science Class representatives Tyler Paul and Nathan Williams presented the new Recycling Program to school board members at the Work Session on May 16, 2018. Tyler and Nathan gave an overview of their plan and presented their recycling efforts collecting paper and plastic over the past month. Since all of the vending machine items at the high school are plastic, there was no need for aluminum recycling at this time. Based upon the pilot-program recycling collections, students projected the amounts of paper and plastic collections on a monthly/yearly basis. To successfully implement the program school-wide, students will need larger-volume, single-stream recycling containers placed in strategic locations around the high school, outdoor recycling dumpsters, and assistance from the maintenance staff as needed. The WJH School Board of Directors is in full support of this much-needed program and applauded the students for their outstanding efforts and environmental consciousness. According to School Board President Mr. Brian Fernandes, “Recycling is a great educational opportunity, engaging students in a sustainable behavior that they can take with them outside of the classroom. The Recycling Program presented is extremely cost-effective and can even lead to future revenue.”