KANSAS GREEN SCHOOLS PROGRAM

August 9, 2017 Kansas Environmental Conference

Laura Downey, Executive Director

A Little KACEE Background

• Founded in 1969

• Public/Private Partnership with more than 500 individual and organizational members

• Founded by then Superintendent of Public Education Merle Hayden as an advisory council to the KSDE

• Affiliate of the North American Association for Environmental Education

What We Strive For

• VISION: Growing a healthy, vibrant and resilient Kansas through the power of environmental education

• MISSION: Accelerate environmental literacy in Kansas through non-biased, science-based environmental education.

What is Environmental Education?

Environmental education may best be defined as a process directed at creating awareness and understanding about environmental issues that leads to responsible individual and group actions.

• Focuses on processes that promote critical thinking, problem solving, and effective decision-making skills

• Good environmental education teaches kids HOW to think and not WHAT to think.

What We Do:

• Professional Development

• Networking Events

• Leadership Development

• Recognition Programs

• Resources and Direct Support

• Kansas Green Schools Network

Kansas Green School Program

• One of the nation’s largest state-based Green Schools program

• Collaborative with Project Learning Tree GreenSchools! and the National Wildlife Federation’s Eco-Schools USA

• Established in 2008 in partnership with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Air

• Expanded to include Bureau of Water, Bureau of Waste Management, Bureau of Environmental Remediation

• Currently sponsored by the Bureau of Air and Bureau of Water, Watershed Management Section

Kansas Green School Program

The Kansas Green Schools Network is a network of 450 schools and 19 school districts from around the state.

Map at www.kansasgreenschools.org/

What is a Green School?

• Establish a Green Team

• Engage students, teachers, administration, staff and community in investigating the environmental footprint of the school in five areas

• Collect data, analyze, make a plan and implement

• Share the plan and Celebrate

• Get Recognized

Five Areas to Investigate

•Energy•Waste and Recycling•Water•Healthy School Environment•The Learning Community

*Investigations are free to schools

Green Schools in ActionWaste and Recycling

• Complete High School Maize

• Teacher attended professional development

• Began recycling

• Work now with four schools in district and recycle more than 15 tons of paper annually

• Composting

• Community Pick Up

• School Gardens

Green Schools in Action Water• Wyandotte High School

• Started with gardens

• Focus on Water, investigation of the local watershed, water testing, water use at school

• Grants to support community water study

• Lead teacher honored as Presidential Innovation Awardee for Environmental Education

Green Schools In ActionEnergy• Horace Good Middle School

• Students build energy models for wind and solar energy generation

• Home of the “Dancing Monkey”

• Field trip to Sunflower Electric Plant

• Connections between energy, recycling, air quality and more.

Green Schools In PracticeHealthy School Environment

• Erie High School investigations led to use of “greener” cleaning solutions and highly coveted parking for carpoolers

• Southwest Elementary in Pratt implemented Walk to School day programs to encourage kids to walk or bike to school, achieving a dual goal for health and air quality.

Green Schools In PracticeLearning Community

• Service Valley Charter School

• Early Childhood Workshop for educators

• OWLS Funding

• Pocket Prairie with young students as both a conservation effort and a learning site

Green Schools Recognition

• Kansas Green School of the Year

• Three Levels of Recognition, Silver, Gold and Green Globe

• US Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools • Five Schools in Kansas

Sample Learning Activity

On the Horizon

• Early Childhood Green Schools

• School Gardens

• Dashboard for Impact

• Green Gatherings

How to Get Involved

• Get your children’s school involved• Volunteer at a local green school• Become at Green School Partner at

www.kansasgreenschools.org• Sponsor teachers to get professional

development• Get involved with KACEE • Attend the Kansas Environmental Education

Conference, Nov. 3-4 in Hutchison

THANK YOU!

Questions or Contact?

Laura Downey, ldowney@kacee.org