Rogers Middle School Green Team holding up bamboo straws with their teacher, Pamela Weinstein, on the right. Photo Credit: Vanida Ngeam, Strawfree.org Intern.
Rogers Middle School’s Green Team is Committed to Being #StrawFree
The Will Rogers Middle School Green Team maintains their school’s compost and recycling program.
On Wednesday, September 21, StrawFree.org was invited to Will Rogers Middle School in Long Beach, California to talk with students about the effects of plastic pollution and how it impacts their lives. Each student left with a bamboo straw and a better understanding of how individual choices, like using a plastic straw, have an affect on the environment.
The students were part of Green Team — an elective class in which 37 passionate students find ways to make their school more sustainable.
This year, the students are competing for the US Department of Education Green Ribbon Award by carrying out a letter writing campaign encouraging students, teachers, parents, and local businesses to be more sustainable — including going #strawfree. One of the pillars of the National Green Ribbon Award is to provide effective environmental education and partnering with StrawFree.org does just that.
We are excited follow the Green Team’s efforts and will keep you updated on their #strawfree related activities.
More About the Green Team
The Green Team is active in preserving their middle school’s sustainability by managing a bottle and can recycling program, overseeing trash sorting stations at lunchtime, and even maintaining a compost pile that they built themselves. Their efforts landed them in 2nd place in the Grades of Green Trash Free Challenge in which they reduced lunch trash from 43 bags to 3 bags by diverting trash and encouraging zero-waste packed lunches. Their teacher, Pamela Weinstein, won the Long Beach Hero Award in 2015 for her green work at Rogers Middle School.