Tag Archives: Champions of the Environment

DHEC in the News: Champions of the Environment, opioids, Earth Day

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Here’s a look at health and environmental news from around South Carolina.

Champions of the Environment

In its 25th year, the Champions of the Environment program has granted over $380,000 to 320 school groups across the state, and made a significant impact in the lives of children and the environment.

General Interest

Americans are Filling Fewer Opioid Prescriptions

(TRENTON, N.J.) — New data show that the number of prescriptions for opioid painkillers filled in the U.S. fell dramatically last year. They showed their biggest drop in 25 years.

The decline comes amid increasing legal restrictions and public awareness of the dangers of addiction.

Students at Lakewood Elementary celebrate Earth Day

Horry County, S.C. (WPDE) — It’s never too early to start learning about our planet, and that’s exactly what students at Lakewood Elementary School did Saturday.

Hundreds of students gathered with their outdoor inquiry teacher, Marie Valentine, for the celebration.

Celebrating 25 Years of Empowering Youth Environmental Action

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By Amanda Ley
Watershed Manager—Broad/Edisto Basins
Champions of the Environment Program Coordinator
S.C. Watershed Atlas Coordinator
Bureau of Water

South Carolina students and teachers have been doing their part for the environment for 25 years! DHEC started Champions of the Environment in 1993 with the goal of

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Jackson Creek Elementary School: Wood Duck Habitat Installation (25th Anniversary Champion)

encouraging, enabling, and recognizing youth environmental education projects that develop awareness, promote behavior change, or improve and protect our water, air, and land.

Over the years, Champions has been providing monetary awards to students and teachers to carry out environmental education projects. By participating in hands-on environmental activities, students benefit the environment and become life-long environmental stewards.

Projects focus on current environmental issues

In the first year of the program, monthly awards recognized students who were actively developing solutions to environmental problems. Winners were featured in a TV commercial, and received Champions’ medallions and savings bonds.

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Irmo High School: The Bee’s Needs (25th Anniversary Champion)

Today, the Champions program awards eight $2,000 grants each year and several smaller grants to help get projects started. Grant winners are featured in a statewide TV commercial, their project is highlighted on the Champions of the Environment webpage, and they receive local recognition for their environmental work.

Over the years, Champions projects have evolved to keep up with current environmental issues. Initially, projects included recycling, gardening, and water quality. Now, this competitive grant program awards innovative projects involving alternative energy, bee keeping, stormwater management, habitat restoration, energy efficiency, and Adopt-A-Stream monitoring. Many schools partner with local environmental organizations, giving students the chance to work on real world projects alongside professionals.

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Lakewood Elementary School: Locally Grown Seed Library (25th Anniversary Champion) 

Since 1993, 323 projects have been awarded, impacting thousands of students from kindergarten through 12th grade. Additionally, people all over the state have heard and seen Champion’s environmental awareness messages via the TV spots featuring the winning schools. They are aired annually and are now also featured on social media platforms.

Strong partnership supports Champions program

Since its beginning, the Champions program has enjoyed a strong commitment from its business partners. The team effort between Champions’ public-private partnership has been instrumental to the long-term success of the Champions program, and has made it possible to fund so many environmental education projects. Today, the Partnership consists of DHEC, International Paper, and SCE&G, with assistance from the Environmental Education Association of South Carolina.

Champions’ long-term goal is to foster an environmental ethic in youth that remains intact as they become adults, resulting in citizens who will both respect and protect our natural resources. Some of the first Champions would be in their 40s now, with families of their own, instilling environmental stewardship in the next generation.

Visit the DHEC website to learn more about the Champions of the Environment program and to see the list of 2017-2018 grant recipients and details about their projects.

Eight S.C. Schools Receive Champions of the Environment Grants

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Eight schools have been awarded grants to support efforts to educate the next generation of environmental stewards.

“This year, Champions of the Environment grant program winners will establish wildlife habitats, and develop learning gardens and outdoor classrooms,” said Amanda Ley, DHEC‘s coordinator for the Champions of the Environment program. “Environmental education programs like the Champions program provide opportunities for students to become engaged in real environmental issues that go far beyond the classroom and hopefully make a lasting impact.”

About Champions of the Environment

Established in 1993, Champions of the Environment has been empowering youth environmental action for 25 years. Champions of the Environment provides resources and support to foster environmental education and action in South Carolina’s kindergarten through 12th grade classrooms. The program is sponsored by DHEC, International Paper and SCE&G, with assistance from the Environmental Education Association of South Carolina.

“Some of our first Champions would be in their 40s now, with families of their own,” said Ley. “We hope that they have carried on the culture of environmental stewardship, promoting behavior change in South Carolina.”

The eight Champions of the Environment winners

This year’s grant winners are:

  • Lakewood Elementary School, Horry County — Students will establish a seed library by growing, harvesting, storing, and sharing seeds from locally grown heirloom vegetables.
  • Academy for Technology and Academics, Horry County — Plants will be grown in three different garden systems to determine which one results in better water use efficiency, soil quality, plant production, and labor input.
  • East Clarendon Middle/High School, Clarendon County — An outdoor classroom will be created to teach students about natural habitats, composting and recycling, and the weather’s effect on plant growth.
  • Dutch Fork Middle School, Lexington/Richland Counties — Students in the ACTION (Assisting Communities Together Inspiring Our Neighbors) Program will work with special needs classes to improve an outdoor classroom by increasing plant diversity to attract pollinators.
  • McBee Elementary School, Chesterfield County — The entire school will be engaged in hands-on science by planting and maintaining a garden, building and decorating rain barrels, and composting cafeteria waste.
  • Jackson Creek Elementary School, Richland County — Naturalists from Camp Leopold will help students create a wood duck habitat in the wetland surrounding the school.
  • Porter-Gaud Lower School, Charleston County — Students will cultivate pollinator habitats on campus by restoring an existing nature trail and school garden.
  • Irmo High School, Lexington/Richland Counties — Standard and special education students will join forces to support a bee population by composting cafeteria waste for a pollinator garden.

Visit the DHEC website for more information about the Champions of the Environment program.

Champions of the Environment: Northwest Middle School

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We live in a society that is focused on growth and development. As we continue to do this, we must encourage our children to protect the beauty of their communities. Northwest Middle School is located along side the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains in Greenville County. Our goal was to get our students to encourage beauty while protecting the many species of birds in our area and protecting their homes.

As a school we recognize that we are lucky to live in a beautiful part of Greenville County. We know that as populations grow so too does the amount of waste products. As part of the grant, we were able to enhance a basic recycling program from just paper to now including plastic, glass, and cardboard. Our students are recycling hundreds of pounds of waste each year that won’t end of up in landfills or on the side of the road. Our major goal of the grant was to provide beautiful bird houses around our campus. We now have installed 16 birdhouses for various types of birds in our area. We can bird watch and identify different species living in our houses. Students constructed and installed the birdhouses. They made signs for each birdhouse with information about native South Carolina birds.

The best part of this project was that it helped the entire school get involved. Some of our students built the houses while others painted and stained them while others worked on the signs for them. It truly became a school wide project. The houses were installed by parents and community members. In the spring we have been able to see many birds taking advantage of these new houses. Students get to enjoy seeing them fly around our campus and enjoy these houses. Parents and visitors are enjoying seeing the great work of the students and the beautiful birds.

These projects will be long lasting. The bird houses will continue to provide beauty to our campus while the recycling program will benefit our environment as we continue to support recycling efforts. Our students are learning more each day about protecting the environment for all people and creatures as part of their science classes and by watching the great things happening on our campus.

Champions of the Environment Merit Winner: Montessori School of Anderson Compost Initiative

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by
Charles Jordan
Montessori School of Anderson

This is the fifth of a series of blog posts recognizing winners of the 2016 Champions of the Environment awards.

At the Montessori School of Anderson, environmental education is an important aspect of our curriculum. Montessori philosophy encourages children to be self-directed and follow their interests. If we can provide a school environment with opportunities for children to discover the outdoors, we are planting seeds for a healthy environment. The inspiration for MSA’s Champions of the Environment project was food. We realized that after lunches and snacks, we had scrap food that was going to the landfill. This was a missed opportunity for replenishing nutrients in our garden’s soil! Through our composting project, our students are learning how red wiggler worms and bacteria can break down scrap and spoiled food into something useful and beneficial to the soil. Students learned that the worm castings not only return nutrients to the soil but they can help break up clumps of soil to allow air and water to pass through. They were surprised by some of the statistics that shows how much money families can save by composting. The students were given a lesson about the efficiency of red wigglers and how to assemble a worm bin. The class has created two vermiculture bins to compare and contrast the vermicomposting and hot composting methods.

The best part of our project is the campus-wide involvement across grades from K3 to 12th. The most challenging part of this project has been educating teachers and students about the importance of composting and what can be added to a compost pile. We think that this project will have lasting impacts beyond this school year. One of our goals is to grow crops, such as alfalfa and buckwheat that can be added to our compost in addition to food scraps, to create a continuous supply of compost for our gardens. Each level offers a daily morning snack and the students are responsible for preparing their own snack. Our aim is to create an environment where our students can grow, harvest, clean and prepare the food that they have grown. This will help them have a greater understanding of where their food comes from and how easy and rewarding it is to grow your own fruits and vegetables. If you want to start your own environmental education project, we suggest start planning and building community involvement early for your project to continue being successful after its launch.