April 24th, 2013
Tim Walker Memorial Awards for Environmental Stewardship
The Tim Walker awards were established by the Board to honour the life of secondary school teacher Tim Walker and his contribution to education and environmental initiatives. The annual award is $2000, which is to be equally distributed among two elementary and two secondary schools.
A working group from the Environmental Advisory Committee reviewed the applications for the awards, taking into consideration the following criteria:
- Staff and student involvement (current and future) and environmental stewardship
- Impact on student learning/fostering learning and engaging students
- Environmental benefits – shading, greening, waste reduction, recycling
- Quality of information
The schools that were selected to receive the 2012-13 award are: Coronation PS, Hillcrest PS, Grand River CI and Kitchener-Waterloo C&VS.
Coronation PS – Kindergarten Play Area:
The new Kindergarten integrated outdoor play and learning environment will be a place where students learn by doing, experimenting and observing. The space will include a combination of trees, shrubs, wild flowers, vegetable gardens, vines, sculptures, murals, shaded areas and seating. While the focus is on Kindergarten students, all students in the school will benefit from the space.
Hillcrest PS – Soccer Field in the Graduation Forest:
Currently the school is undergoing a Full-Day Kindergarten 4 classroom addition to the building. The section of the school property which contained the soccer field and goalposts has been lost and a new soccer field with new goalposts will be established in a clearing within the forest. The grounds are well used by the community as there is a playground, areas of shade, basketball nets, and a field. This project will work in conjunction with the network of trails in the forest, and would be adjacent to the community pathway system that connect the school to the neighbouring subdivision. The project aims to enhance the experience of students and community members using the soccer field that is situated in the forest.
Grand River Collegiate Institute – Bring on the Birds:
This project involves building birdhouses and the placement of them within the school area and community. The main goal of the project is to increase the number of native species of birds in the area. The environmental students (40) will build the houses using the school’s woodworking shop and will place the birdhouses within the school property and nearby community.
Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate & Vocational School – Sports Field Restoration:
The KCI sports field will be further developed to provide shade seating areas for use by students at lunch and during physical education classes. The addition of native plants will begin to restore lost habitat to the downtown core. In the spring of 2013, work will begin on the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and the school will lose a large portion of green space along King St. With the loss of green space, the school is looking to improve the newly renovated sports field across the street. By adding shade trees and seating areas,students will have access to much needed space to enjoy during good weather. Adding native trees and shrubs will provide habitat and draw native wildlife, birds, and insects to the area
Representatives from Coronation PS, Grand River CI and KCI after collecting their award from Tim Walker’s mother.
Green Bin Project Award
Five schools have received the Eugene Award for Excellence in Green Binning from the Region of Waterloo!
Wellesley PS, Keatsway PS, Forest Hill PS, Baden PS and Williamsburg PS all recycled the most food and paper towel waste and are the green bin leaders for 2012-13!
The WRDSB has over 50 schools that participate in the green bin project in cooperation with The Region of Waterloo. Participating in the green bin program, schools help create a new natural compost that is used by local farmers to improve their soil.
Congratulations to all our schools who use green bins!
Categories: Schools
