2015 - First Place Winner - DPS Go Green Challenge High School Division
(tied with Cass Tech)
*1st place High School Water Challenge*2nd Place High School Energy Challenge
In 2012-2013, Mr. Sargent led the Go Green initiative. They completed all elements of the challenge and established three garden boxes near the school playground. The following year, Dr. Rhodes-O'Neill took up the challenge with Mr. Sargeant's help and they created an energy squad, recycling team, and added 6 more garden beds near the field. The team also joined the Keeping Detroit Green program and the Greening of Detroit Initiative. That year, during the 2013-2014 challenge, West Side Academy won 1st place in the Water Challenge and 3rd place in the overall DPS Go Green Challenge. This school year, 2014-2015, the Green team, "WSA Green Panthers" completed the following activities:
*Due to our dedication to the recycling program, we were one of the first high schools to receive a recycling bin!
Students received job applications to work with Americorps members over the summer and will participate in the end of the year DPS Go Green Challenge awards ceremony in June.
*Due to our dedication to the recycling program, we were one of the first high schools to receive a recycling bin!
- Formed team and Conducted Sustainability Patrols
- Attended the Kick-Off Meeting: Ms. Brown, Mr. Norwood, and Dr. Rhodes-O'Neill
- Patrols are conducted by walking around the school and shutting off lights as well as checking recycling bins
- Bosch STEM grant Awarded
- Received grant for after school program - students participated in solar workshop, poster creation, painted recycling boxes, and created website
- Announcement boards were placed in three locations to advertise the club and post activities
- Recycling Challenge
- Participated in Recycling Bowl - where we weighed our recycling including paper and plastics
- Painted our recycling dumpster to ensure that garbage is not placed in the bin
- Completed Carbon Footprint activity that looked at the effects of our resource use on the earth
- Energy and Water Challenge
- Powered down for the vacations - There were 4 breaks and with the engineers help, we shut down the charging stations for the breaks
- Meter Reports - Conducted meter readings and calculation reports for electricity and water
- Hosted a parent energy saving workshop
- Held an after school workshop with Soulardarity about solar power projects
- Placed signs on doors reminding staff to power down and save energy
- Checked the light switch reminders that were placed around the school the previous year
- Light Bulb Hunt and Hallway Light Metering helped monitor energy saving bulbs and natural light in the school
- Mid-Year High School Award Winner
- Also received award for having at least 4 points at the end of the first semester
- Garden and Earth Day Challenge
- Put garden to bed in the fall
- Planned garden and prepared seeds from Greening of Detroit Garden Initiative
- Earth Day activities for Green Week:
- School Green Assembly
- Green Day - students wore their green
- Garden Day - students tilled and planted in the garden
- Community Clean up around the school
- Rainbow Plates - counted foods that we eat of different colors
- Created 1st annual recycling scholarship and completed applications
- Paula K. Ford Scholarship Award winner for 2015 - Congratulations Darren Colbert!
- Currently, the Green Team is looking into Michigan Green School Certification for the 2015-2016 school year
Students received job applications to work with Americorps members over the summer and will participate in the end of the year DPS Go Green Challenge awards ceremony in June.
2016 - First Place Winner - DPS Go Green Challenge High School Division
(tied with 3 other schools)
In the 2015-2016 school year, Dr. Rhodes-O'Neill, with the help of Mr. Morris leading the Recycling Team and Ms. Brown acting as co-chair, led the Green team, "WSA Green Panthers" to another victory in the Go Green Challenge and completed the following activities:
- Conducted Recycling Sustainability Patrols
- Attended the Kick-Off Meeting: Ms. Brown
- Patrols are conducted by walking around the school and shutting off lights as well as checking recycling bins
- Bosch STEM grant Awarded
- Received grant for the Daren Colbert Solar Panel Project, based on his PKF Award essay
- Received a second grant for Composting Project, to begin working towards a Waste-Free lunch and enriched garden soil for the garden beds
- Recycling Challenge
- Participated in Recycling Bowl - where we weighed our recycling including paper and plastics
- Held Parent and student recycling workshops
- Attended the Youth Climate Summit at the Detroit Science Center (students were part of the Detroit Youth Climate Change Video on YouTube)
- *see below
- Completed Carbon Footprint activity that looked at the effects of our resource use on the earth
- Energy and Water Challenge
- Powered down for the vacations - There were 4 breaks and with the engineers help, we shut down the charging stations for the breaks
- Meter Reports - Conducted meter readings and calculation reports for electricity and water
- Hosted a parent energy saving workshop and water workshop
- Worked with Ryter Cooperative Industries to create the solar panel project (Large semi-portable briefcase that recharges cellphones)
- Placed signs on doors reminding staff to power down and save energy
- Checked the light switch reminders and made posters for the hallways
- Light Bulb Hunt and Hallway Light Metering helped monitor energy saving bulbs and natural light in the school
- Used drip tubes to monitor leaks around the building and report them to the school
- Mid-Year High School Award Winner
- Also received award for having at least 4 points at the end of the first semester
- Garden and Earth Day Challenge
- Put garden to bed in the fall
- Planned garden and prepared seeds from Greening of Detroit Garden Initiative
- Held Composting sessions in the Biology and Earth Science classroom hosted by IRIS Waste Diversion Specialists
- Earth Day activities for Green Week:
- School Green Assembly
- Green Day - students created tee-shirts
- Garden Day - students tilled and planted in the garden
- Community Clean up around the school
- Rainbow Plates - counted foods that we eat of different colors
- Held 2nd annual recycling scholarship and completed applications
- Paula K. Ford Scholarship Award winner for 2016 - Congratulations Casandra Brown!
- Currently, the Green Team is looking into Michigan Green School Certification for the 2016-2017 school year
2017
Continuing the tradition of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle at West Side Academy, the Green Panthers enter their 5th year as a Go Green School!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-xcjxLGlKSOeENLTjVSMzlqV1k/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-xcjxLGlKSOeENLTjVSMzlqV1k/view?usp=sharing