Schools
Neighborhood E-Cycling Program Supports Ellington, Helps Environment
The Duke Ellington School of the Arts' Green School Project will keep electronics out of landfills and support programs for college-bound students.
The unseasonably warm weather might have triggered the spring cleaning itch early. If so, consider wiping the dust off that old laptop or digging through your "junk" drawer for your ancient ipod. The Duke Ellington School of the Arts' Green School Project (GSP) will help e-cycle your unwanted electronics, keeping toxic items out of the ground and supporting programming at the area high school.
We asked teacher Seth Brecher how he came to be in charge of the GSP and what it means for Ellington:
Patch: How did you discover the Green School Project (GSP)?
Seth Brecher (SB): The Green Schools Project was featured in an article I read about school fund raising initiatives. I am always interested in helping the school raise money and I am on our school recycling committee. This project provided the opportunity to combine these two interests.
Patch: Have you started receiving donations yet?
SB: Yes, we have had over three hundred items donated from members of the school and local community across all of the donation categories: cell phones, laptops, GPS devices, iPods, printer cartridges, and digital cameras. In total, we have kept hundreds of pounds of broken and "no longer used" electronics out of local landfill, while raising money for the school. We're all very excited about this.
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Patch: Who else helps you run the GSP at Ellington?
SB: The students in my College Summit class. This class is focused on the college admissions process during the first semester of school. Once that process begins winding down we work on personal finance, life skills, and service learning related initiatives. The students have learned a great deal about operations, logistics, marketing, and recycling through the Green Schools Project.
Patch: Are you turning the GSP into a lesson plan of any sort?
SB: Definitely. We have discussed the environmental impact as well as business operations of the project through lecture and students initiated research. Students are learning a great deal from this initiative.
Patch: What will the funds go to?
SB: The funds generated will be divided up amongst College Summit students. The plan that has been discussed is providing the students with gift cards that they can use towards items they'll need for college, books, transportation, etc. The final plan is still being determined, but the students will benefit as they transition to their post-secondary studies.
Patch: Is this part of a larger commitment to green living by the school?
SB: Yes, we have a recycling program at the school that the students also play an integral role. We have recycled thousands of pounds of materials this school year.
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If your house has some old, broken or unused electronic items, consider donating them to The Duke Ellington School of the Arts' Green School Project.
They will accept:
- Cell Phones
- Laptops
- iPods/MP3s
- GPS Devices
- Printer Cartridges
To donate, simply contact Seth Brecher, a teacher at Ellington, who can be reached via email at sethbrecher@gmail.com. Seth can arrange for drop off or pickup of your donated recyclable electronics.
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