Student ideas for eco-friendly high school

In honor of Earth Day last week, the Whitefish High School Environmental Club called for students to wear green and practice earth-friendly activities. Students also were surveyed about Earth Day to shared ideas on what they would like to see to make the high school "greener."

More than 150 students were interviewed. The suggestions were detailed and numerous, with more accessible recycling being the most prevalent.

"I think Whitefish needs an organized recycling system," one student said. "I feel like many want to recycle everything from newspapers to aluminum cans, but they don't know where to go or what to do, so they throw it all away."

"I would like to see something in the high school and town that promotes and makes recycling easier," another said.

Some students suggested establishing opportunities within the high school for students to bring recyclable items from home, as well as having a glass-recycling system and more recycling bins at the high school. Another prevalent suggestion was less paper use.

"Certain teachers waste ridiculous amounts of paper, printing off 50 or 60 packets a year," a student said. "We never use them much anyway."

"Informational packets and assignment handouts should be on a teacher Web site so the paper is not wasted," another student said. "I throw away stacks of unread paper every year that shouldn't have to be wasted."

Students advocated use of electronic student e-mails and assignments as solutions, as well as an electronic student handbook. Many students also suggested less use of lights and heating during the year.

"I think a lot of teachers leave too many lights on," one said. "If we rebuild our school, we should make sure every room has windows, and those teachers who have windows now should limit light use. The school is often too bright anyway."

"Turn the heat down or establish a heating system that is efficient," another said. "The heaters don't need to run through summer."

Student solutions included increased use of outdoor classrooms and double-pane windows, as well as more eco-friendly light bulbs and designated "quiet times' throughout the day.

"Having more outside classrooms uses less energy," a student said. "We should have more benches and picnic tables on campus so we don't have to use classroom lights and can enjoy the outdoors and fresh air, as well as double-pane windows that are more energy-efficient."

"Turning lights and other electronics off for certain periods during the school day as a 'quiet time' would save a lot of energy," another said.

Alternative transportation was another frequent suggestion.

"I really like the walk- or bike-to-school days," one student said. "Alternative transportation should be encouraged and rewarded at Whitefish High School, through special days or weeks for biking or walking to school."

"If you bike to school, you get out for lunch at noon instead of 12:11, thus reducing gas waste and rewarding those who help stop it," a student suggested.

Many students also suggested picking up trash together as a student body.

"I think we should have school-wide cleanup operations so that we clean up all around the school premises," a student said. "Students in study halls or science classes could pick up trash around the school or community once a week."

Other "green" suggestions included use of solar energy, a greenhouse or garden, planting more trees on campus, composting and using eco-friendly cleaning supplies.

"Most importantly, we need to learn how to respect each other and our surroundings," a student said. "We can do that by cleaning up after ourselves and respecting the earth."