MARYSVILLE MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS MEASURE THEIR SUCCESS!
On Tuesday, May 12th, four seventh grade math students from Marysville Middle School gathered to measure a large school bus and calculate its volume. In doing so, they learned that during this school year, they and their fellow students at Marysville Middle School will have kept the equivalent of nearly six school buses worth of trash out of the landfill.
This makes tangible the efforts of the Green Team, brainchild of custodian Matt Edgerton, formed last fall. The Green Team is a team of students, teachers, managers, parents, and a building principal, charged with replacing the 100,000+ styrofoam trays thrown away annually from the cafeteria's breakfast and lunch programs. Matt, a member of SEIU Local 925, came up with the idea for the Green Team in response to a national contest, “Everybody Wins,” sponsored by SEIU. The purpose of the contest was to solicit ideas for quality public services from union members. Matt’s was the winning idea; he received a cash prize, and a grant was awarded to the Marysville School District to help turn The Green Team into a reality.
The program has been a tremendous success, popular with students and staff who share a sense of pride in making their campus a greener place. While some were skeptical that middle school students would take the initiative to separate their lunch waste into three separate refuse containers (garbage, combined recyclables, and compostables), Matt was confident that the students would be up to the challenge. In fact, they exceeded Matt’s expectations by taking real ownership of the program.
The projected annual savings for the school district based on the current capture rate are:
• 90% reduction of cafeteria-related waste sent to the landfill
• 50% reduction of building-wide waste sent to the landfill
• 24 tons of greenhouse gases reduced (the equivalent of taking six cars off of the road)
• 25 tons of waste composted
• 80 tons of waste diverted from landfills
• $5,000 savings to the District’s utility bill
These saving are so impressive that the District is expanding the program to other schools. On Wednesday, May 13th, the program kicks off at Marysville Secondary Campus.
Custodian Matt Edgerton with 7th grade math students Joel Scott, Sydney Green, Brittany Allsbury, and Julia Krasiesky.
Matt and students take measurements inside the school bus.
Students calculate the volume of the school bus in cubic inches.