St. Mike's EcoSchools Update

EcoSchools is up and running for the 2010-2011 School Year

mrscam — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 16:29:46 +0000

Two years ago, St. Michael Catholic High School became an Eco-certified school. The changes in greener behaviour and attitudes, the support of students and staff and the leadership of the EcoSchools Team was recognized and rewarded by the EcoSchools Head Office in Toronto, after a school audit. St. Mike’s was granted a Silver Certification.

Many founding members of the EcoSchools Team graduated in 2009, therefore the 2009-2010 team – a much smaller group – decided to simply maintain the initiatives that were put in place the previous school year. We did not reapply for certification, but the Team continued to guide and encourage in the habits of turning off lights, turning off monitors, recycling paper, cans, plastic and glass. We maintained the Battery Recycling Program and the ThinkRecycle Program – where old cell phones and used print cartridges are collected for a small financial compensation. A few other successes from last school year are worth noting. The cafeteria eliminated the use of Styrofoam and initial steps were taken to create an outdoor classroom.

This school year, under the leadership of Ms. Howison and with the support of past team leaders, the EcoSchools Team is off to a great start. An action plan is being established and all are energized and enthusiastic about this renewed commitment to responsible stewardship of the earth!

Earth Week Activities

mrscam — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 21:25:15 +0000

Earth Week is upon us and St. Mike’s EcoSchools Team has wonderful events scheduled throughout the week. See the list below.
Earth Week Activities
Monday April 19 – Friday April 23, 2010

Monday:
-Fast Fact/Green Tip with morning announcements
-Liturgy of the Word

Tuesday:
-Fast Fact/Green Tip with morning announcements
-Grade 9 recycling skit in Atrium during High School lunch

Wednesday:
-Fast Fact/Green Tip with morning announcements
-Waste Free Wednesday – Bring in your own reusable plate and save 25 cents on fries and 50 cents on other hot lunches from the cafeteria.
-Recycled art display in the Atrium during both the High School and Intermediate lunches

Thursday:
-Fast Fact/Green Tip with morning announcements
-Earth Day – Students wear green for free
-Big yard clean up during both the High School and the Intermediate lunches
- Miss K’s band will entertain outside during the HS lunch
-End of day we will wrap St. Michael’s in green – around 1:45 pm
Mr. Wong will take photographs.

Friday:
-Fast Fact/Green Tip with morning announcements
-Hanging our Dirty Laundry in Public (paper cups) – at both HS and Intermediate lunches. (Teams will collect paper cups that have been discarded and left to litter our community. These will be displayed on clotheslines in front of the school. The team with the longest line of litter will win a prize.)

Exciting Recycling Changes

smchs — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:34:44 +0000

Here is an update from the Green Team on some of the changes that have taken place to the Recycling program at St. Mike’s:

1) We can now recycle paper plates (small and large) that are being used in the cafeteria. (We are no longer using Styrofoam in the cafeteria. That’s a big step!). If you are on cafeteria duty, please ensure that big chunks of food are removed from the plates before they are recycled in the blue PAPER bin.

2) Also, we have gotten rid of the big toters in the cafeteria and in the Intermediate wing. These toters were unsanitary. Now all items are collected in bio-degradable plastic bags. We are now able to recycle plastic, cans, and bottles all together. Please motivate students to place their recyclables in the proper bin so as to avoid contamination.

To date, some things are still NOT recyclable (e.g. poutine containers, juice box containers, milk and chocolate milk containers and some plastics, etc.). A board indicating which items are not recyclable will be posted in the cafeteria.

3) Classroom paper pick-up will continue for all High School and Intermediate classes, with pick-up usually occurring on Mondays.

4) Lastly, please bring in your old cell phones and used ink and laser print cartridges for the Think Recycle Program. Place items in the green/white boxes located in the library and in the main office.

Many thanks for your ongoing support.

EcoSchools 2009-2010

mrscam — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:54:18 +0000

Many of the founding members of our EcoSchools Team graduated this past June.
This year’s small but invigorated group has come together and is motivated to continue to work on the strong foundation that was built last year.
Last school year, St. Michael Catholic High School was awarded an EcoSchools silver certification. We were very proud of our collective efforts!

This year we will continue to heighten awareness with regards to the need to conserve, to reduce, to reuse, and to recycle.

We encourage the entire St. Mike’s community to work together at maintaining the six initiatives found in our action plan – under Energy Conservation and Waste Minimization.

Currently, some studies are being done by classes in order to determine the effectiveness of our initiatives and to assess our next steps.
Stay tuned!!

A certified EcoSchool!

mrscam — Fri, 29 May 2009 18:13:34 +0000

Congratulations to all members of the
St. Michael’s Social Justice EcoSchools Team!
On Thursday May 28, 2009, the auditor from
the EcoSchools Head Office visited St. Michael
Catholic High School. She sat with the team
and asked questions about EcoSchools initiatives,
successes and challenges. Then the auditor,
accompanied by the students and a couple of
teachers, did a walk-about throughout the
school. At the end of the visit, the auditor
informed the group and congratulated them on
becoming an Eco-Certified School.
St. Mike’s will find out their specific ranking
(bronze, silver or gold) in few weeks.
Congratulations to all!

St. Mike’s highlighted by Ontario EcoSchools

smchs — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 01:34:21 +0000

In their February newsletter the Ontario EcoSchools website highlights the efforts of St. Michael Catholic High School to communicate its GREEN efforts through the Internet. Click here to check out the newsletter.

The Think Recycle Fundraising Program

mrscam — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 14:36:22 +0000

In our efforts to become an Eco-Certified
School, we have now joined the Think Recycle Fundraising Program. We encourage students
to bring in print cartridges from home and old
cell phones. We are collecting them in the big cardboard boxes placed in the library, the main
office and in the Chapel area.
We will ship these items for recycling and the
Think Recycle Program will then rebate
St. Mike’s for the value of the items AND plant
trees on our behalf.
Your support of this initiative is greatly
appreciated!

Moving Forward

mrscam — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 19:27:02 +0000

St. Mike’s is certainly moving forward with
regards to our EcoSchools initiatives.
Last week we received our EcoSchools T-Shirts
sporting the logo:
Green Begins With Blue, Conserving Begins
With You!
Both students and teachers wear the T-Shirts
on Wednesday, supporting our Waste Free
Wednesdays Initiative.
Also, class representatives have been chosen.
Class reps will have a few tasks including:
a) Being a voice and setting a positive example
for EcoSchools
b) Acting as a class reminder, to turn off lights
and computer monitors
c) Helping to disseminate information to students
d) Helping out with tasks such as emptying the
recycle bins
I am proud to report that the EcoSchools
movement is becoming ever more apparent
in the behaviour and enthusiasm demonstrated
by both staff and students!

Action Plan

smchs — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:31:59 +0000

Our Action Plan is set in place, and as of January 6^th, we have begun our three month implementation process. These are our target tasks or activities:

Energy Conservation

We turn off the lights upon leaving a room.
We turn off all computer monitors when not in use.
We properly close all doors, particularly doors to the portables.

Waste Minimization

We reuse paper.
We recycle paper, plastic, cans and bottles.
We participate in Waste Free Wednesdays.

St. Mike’s EcoSchools website is up and running!

smchs — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 23:45:54 +0000

Come back often for updates on how St. Mike’s is becoming more eco-friendly. We are diligently working toward an EcoSchools designation. Feel free to post comments on our site – we look forward to hearing from you!