Green Up Our Schools

Slavens Elementary

Green Up Our Schools member since 2011

During the 3 years of the program, each school creates their own "green" plan to recycle more and waste less.

View photos of all the green activities in action.


Waste Reduction Projects Each school must complete a minimum of two waste reduction projects per year. Click on each title to view a more detailed description.

Year 1
Composting Expanded to Classrooms Expanded commercial composting beyond the lunchroom to capture the paper towels thrown away in the classrooms every day. Specially labeled compost bins placed in every classroom. (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Reusable Silverware in the Lunchroom Replaced plastic utensils with reusable metal silverware to eliminate the amount of waste created in the lunchroom each day. (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Commercial Composting Commercial composting is a service provided to the school by an outside company, similar to recycling. Hundreds of pounds of food & paper waste are hauled to a facility that processes it back into soil. The weekly collection system can handle the full volume of organic waste that comes out of the lunchroom, bathrooms, and classrooms. (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Student Green Team (Learn more.)	2011-2012
Year 2
Reusable Dishes for Staff Lounge A set of reusable bowls, plates, cups, and silverware in the staff lounge helps reduce the waste created by disposables. (Learn more.)	2012-2013
Zero Waste Lunch Campaign A Zero Waste Lunch Campaign involves teaching students how to bring a lunch from home without any disposable packaging. Reusable containers take the place of plastic bags. (Learn more.)	2012-2013
Zero Waste Classroom Party Kits A Zero Waste Classroom Party Kit is a set of reusable dishes designed to eliminate the need for disposable plates, cups, and utensils during class festivities. (Learn more.)	2012-2013
Year 3
Recycled Purchasing Policy A Recycled Purchasing Policy emphasizes the importance of buying goods with post-consumer recycled content to close the recycling loop by creating a demand for the kind of products that the school's recycling program creates. (Learn more.)	2013-2014
Paper Towel Reduction Campaign A paper towel reduction campaign raises awareness on the use of paper towels in school, with the goal of reducing consumption. Students create a slogan and track usage patterns. (Learn more.)	2013-2014

Waste Assessment Results

Every school in the program performs at least one waste assessment every year. This activity helps to show progress made and areas that still need improvement.

Percentage of Trash categorized as Recyclable
(Lower is better!)*

50%

2011
(Fall)

Year

*The presence of recyclable materials in the trash means students & teachers are not correctly sorting items they throw away. The lower the percentage, the more successful the recycling program.


Back to All Schools

Although our school's green team has been working well for several years, this program gave us goals, direction, and support for taking the next step with our recycling efforts.