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Secondary School Green Team Projects

SeaTac OSC Students Make Recycled Fashion Statement

Green Team Projects Green Team projects can include removing invasive plants through non-chemical means.

Have you thought about reusing a sofa cover for a dramatic evening gown? Or your Sunday newspaper for a skirt? After learning about the everyday affects our trash has on the environment, Fashion Design and Marketing students at the SeaTac Occupational Skills Center created fashions from discarded materials. Teacher Jill Price-Crawley received a King County Green Team grant, as well as funding from ReUse Resources, to hire Robin Worley, a trash fashion specialist from Haute Trash. Ms. Worley assisted the students in transforming waste into wearable art and presenting their designs in a fashion show for the over 3,800 students from across the state who attended the 2007 WA State DECA Career Development Conference. View a Flash-based slideshow of the imaginative designs of these resourceful young women, or download the PDF version (PDF, 1 MB). Photos courtesy of Amber Trillo and the West Seattle Herald.

The King County Solid Waste Division recognizes the following Green Teams for their efforts to make Earth Smart choices that reduce waste and help habitat in King County. These 2007-2008 Green Teams received certificates of achievement and water bottles made from stainless steel.

Green Teams are important participants in the success of many of the county's Green Schools Program. Several were recognized as Earth Heroes at School.

Attic School, Woodinville

Students in Lee Rotweiller's class received a mini-grant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at their school. Students converted the lighting to energy-efficient CFLs, started an electronics recycling program, educated the community about reusable shopping bags, started an organic garden and a composting program, repaired the school greenhouse, educated the community about climate change, met with local representatives and senators to provide their input on environmental concerns, and started a blog addressing world issues.

Dimmitt Middle School, Renton School District

Kandi Field's seventh-grade Green Team made posters, issued morning announcements and developed presentations to help the school improve its recycling program. They focused particularly on keeping contamination out of recycling bins.

Eton School, Bellevue

Fourth through eighth-grade students, guided by Sonja Everson, started a battery recycling campaign. Students designed collection containers to be used in classrooms and main spaces throughout the school. They prepared and gave presentations to classrooms, and published a flyer in the school's monthly parent newsletter. Students also helped remove invasive plants and planted native ones in a community learning space.

Liberty High School, Issaquah School District

Liberty's Environmental Club H.O.P.E (Help Our Poor Earth), guided by science teacher Diane Allen, expanded their activities beyond their highly successful recycling education efforts to include other environmental activities. They recently joined the Adopt-A-Road program to pick up litter on the roads surrounding the school and plan to help improve the school's habitat by reintroducing native species to the property.

Mercer Island High School, Mercer Island School District

Students, guided by Sommer Whitmarsh, created the Green Week of Awesome. They coordinated with administrative, maintenance and other staff to launch a week of competition to see which lunch period could best reduce its waste. Students also made a video announcement to educate others in the school about reducing waste.

Northwood Middle School, Kent School District

Students in Annette Linn's environmental club initiated a recycling collection program for the school. Recyclable materials at the school are now being diverted from the landfill, an important environmental impact.

Puget Sound Skills Center, Highline School District

Jill Price-Crawley's Trash Fashion week was so successful last year that she repeated it this year. Her students designed clothing and accessories made from discarded materials that were highlighted at a show on May 2.

Secondary Academy for Success, Northshore School District

Teachers Barbara Wilson, Judy Ellis, and Laurie Nunnelee worked with a ninth grade group to take on school recycling. Students provided presentations on leadership and recycling to homeroom classes. Following last year's success, the students once again volunteered their time toward the removal of invasive plants and habitat reconstruction at 21 Acres, a sustainable farming community in Woodinville.

Skyview Junior High, Northshore School District

Advised by John Schmied, students in the Green Club wrote grants for new recycling bins to place around the school. They also put up signs indicating what and where to recycle, raising the level of awareness among the student body of proper recycling.

Tahoma Junior High School, Tahoma School District

Kim McHenry's students spearheaded school-wide recycling education and outreach as part of the King County Green Schools Program.

Tahoma Middle School, Tahoma School District

Paul Gardner's team of students educated staff and students on reducing cafeteria waste and increasing recycling.

Two Rivers High School, Snoqualmie Valley School District

Elise Cooksley's Green Team surveyed the South Fork of the Snoqualmie River and discussed ideas to keep the river clean. They studied options on how to inform the larger community of the impacts they have on water quality in the river.

Evergreen High School, Highline School District

Sara Esrick and Gretchen Fischer's ninth grade students have continued to collect recyclables for the school-wide recycling program. As a result of the recycling program, students have begun to make recycling a habit and there are fewer recyclables in the garbage.

Secondary Academy for Success in King County, Northshore School District

Barbara Wilson's mixed grade Green Team organized and headed work parties at 21 Acres, an agricultural center and community garden based on sustainable practices. The student work parties included learning about sustainable farming, building fences, moving fences, and spreading wood chips. Students also visited Cascade Recycling Center and used the experience to put on a skit at their school about proper recycling. Students are now more aware of the recycling process, the campus is cleaner, and overall the students are more respectful of their learning environment. Due to the effectiveness of the Green Team's efforts, the school has increased its recycling pickup from once a week to three times a week.

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