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Success Story: Issaquah High School
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Earth Hero at School Award
Student Kate Brunette received the King County award in April 2011.
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School District: Issaquah
School Location: Issaquah
Began participating in the Green Schools Program: Fall 2010
Level One of the Green Schools Program: Achieved in May 2011
Waste Reduction and Recycling
- Issaquah High School increased its recycling rate from 16 percent to 64 percent. This increase is the result of a school-wide program that includes collection of recyclable materials in classrooms, offices, hallways and lunchroom, and collection of compostable materials in the lunchroom.
- Recycling increases resulted in doubling outdoor recycling Dumpster pick-ups and decreasing garbage pick-ups.
- Associated Student Body (ASB) and Leadership class members worked to improve the school’s recycling program by adding weekly classroom collection and distributing recycling stickers that list what can and can’t be recycled to all classrooms.
- Students read facts about recycling and the impact of waste on the environment for one week on the morning announcements. Students also created environmental fact posters that were hung throughout the school commons to educate students about the impact of environmental practices.
- With assistance from the City of Issaquah, the school launched a program to collect food scraps and other compostable materials. ASB and Leadership students monitored each lunchroom recycling station for the first two weeks of the program to educate the student body about what items can be collected for composting.
- To prepare for the new composting program, students created an educational video about the do’s and don’ts of composting. The video was aired on the morning announcements. Students also laminated fliers about composting and posted them on every compost bin in the school.
- Proper composting and recycling habits also were promoted in a recent Earth Day lunch competition to sort trash items correctly.
- Printer cartridges are collected and recycled.
- Teachers reduced paper use by using online “drop-boxes” for student homework.
Awards
- Kate Brunette, student, received the King County Earth Hero at School award in spring 2011 for her efforts leading Issaquah High’s recycling and composting programs.
For more information about the school’s conservation achievements and participation in the Green Schools Program, contact:
Derek Heinz, assistant principal
heinzd@issaquah.wednet.edu
Joanne Thompson, head custodian
thompsonj@issaquah.wednet.edu
John Macartney, resource conservation manager, Issaquah School District
johnmacartney@msn.com
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