S.F. High teacher helps rekindle interest in recycling
11/8/2008
Pitman started recycling at the school on his own when he was hired to teach biology and chemistry. There was a recycling club at the school, but there weren't a lot of kids participating, and eventually it died out. That left Pitman as the sole recycler at the school.
"It kind of got transferred to me," Pitman said. "I was coordinating with the city; it was very small-scale."
Last year, though, with the efforts of a newly formed recycling club that he sponsors and help from the city and school district, Pitman has seen recycling grow exponentially.
"We've got about 12 or 13 hard-core kids, mostly seniors, who are basically volunteering their time to go classroom to classroom," he said.
The city's recycling program provides containers for classrooms and 90-gallon rolling carts that are emptied by the city once a week, Pitman said.
Santa Fe High is one of about a dozen schools in the Santa Fe school district working with the city to recycle.
District spokeswoman Erica Landry said the district started with six schools last year as a sort of pilot program. This year, she said, officials are trying to get more schools involved, with the hope that all schools participate in the future.
"It's a concerted effort within the district to make it a pattern and practice," Landry said.
Randall Marco, with the city's recycling program, said so far, the program is working well. One of the more successful aspects of the partnership was a change in the way school recycling is picked up, he said. Schools used to call the city 24 hours before a pickup was needed. Now bins are emptied once a week.
Another part of the effort is teaching students at participating schools about the importance of recycling and about what is and what isn't recyclable.
"I come in and give presentations to kids and staff about what can and cannot go into bins," said Nancy Judd, a local artist who uses recycled materials in her clothing designs.
Judd, who has a contract with the city, takes photos of her work to schools to show students how trash can be used. She is also asking students to write ways that they'll try to live sustainably on strips of paper that she'll eventually use in one of her designs. "It's engaging kids on a different level," Judd said.
Atalaya Elementary School was part of the district's pilot program. Prompted by the school's parent-teacher group, the school started educating students and teachers about recycling, said Terri Selvage, who has twin sons in first grade.
"We did a kick-off for all students," Selvage said, "and we did several school assemblies."
Each classroom got a container for recyclables, and the school received two 90-gallon carts for pickup, she said. This year, Selvage said, the goal is to expand the program and maintain interest in recycling.
"One of the ways we're doing that this year is by tapping into Recycling Awareness Month," she said. Each class is creating turkeys out of trash and recyclable materials during November. The results will be displayed at the school's initial Turkey Trot, a fun run scheduled for Thanksgiving Day.
While both Pitman at Santa Fe High and Selvage appreciate the district's effort to encourage recycling, as well as the city's help with pickup, they both acknowledged that without passionate individuals at school sites, the program might not work.
Selvage also said she'd like to see a larger effort on the part of the district to stress the importance of recycling or do things to show officials are also making an effort, rather than leaving it up to school sites.
Selvage used the example of school lunchrooms, where Styrofoam trays and plastic utensils are thrown away. "If they're going to do something where they don't want to be washing things, can they go to biodegradable?" she asked.
Contact John Sena at 986-3079 or jsena@sfnewmexican.com.