The Shipley School’s sustainability efforts are due in part to a strong team of faculty, administrators, and students. Boyer Sudduth Environmental Consultants’ Sustainability Intern, Lizi Barrow, recently caught up with some of Shipley’s green movers and shakers.

*Upper School Science Teacher and Environmental Sustainability Coordinator, Tamar Norquist*

Shipley’s Sustainability Coordinator, Tamar Norquist, Prepares Students for Environmental Issues Now and in the Future

We are excited to highlight Shipley School’s Sustainability Coordinator and Upper School Science Teacher, Tamar Norquist, as part of our Sustainability Champion Spotlight. Tamar founded the sustainability program in 2017 in partnership with former Head of School, Steve Piltch. Since that time the program has grown under Tamar's leadership to involve faculty, staff, administration, and students. About sustainability in education Tamar reflects: “If the purpose of education is to prepare the young for their own futures, then we are obligated to teach them about environmental issues.”

Shipley’s Upper School History Teacher, Zackaria Gaines, Inspires Future Stewards of the Planet

A member of Shipley’s sustainability team, Upper School History Teacher, Zackaria Gaines, encourages his students to become future environmental stewards of the planet through teaching and action.

Shipley’s Lower School Science Teacher, Dan Del Duca, Understands the Power of Nature

Shipley’s Lower School Science Teacher, Dan Del Duca, understands the power of nature. “I hope to inspire my students to appreciate nature,” notes Dan. “I want my students to be confident and creative problem solvers of the future.”

Full Transcript of the Interview with Norquist, Gaines, and Del Duca:

Why are you committed to sustainability?

Norquist: I’m committed to sustainability in general because I’ve never understood the idea that humans should only care about human lives. That simply makes no sense to me. I’ve lived my life immersed in science, and it has taught me that humans, as brilliant as we are, we are only one small piece of a creation that is unimaginably awesome. I simply can’t not fight for it.

I’m committed to sustainability in schools because I believe that if the purpose of education is to prepare the young for their own futures, then we are obligated to teach them about environmental issues. While there’s plenty we don’t know about our students’ futures, we do know that the environment will factor in prominently. If we want students to properly assume their place in a society that will face environmental challenges, we, their schools, must teach them how.

Gaines: I am committed to sustainability because it is a practice that is central to my worldview and reflects a kind of stewardship of the planet. I hope to do my part in passing on a protected planet to future generations through teaching and action.

Del Duca: Many of my most memorable experiences with my family and friends have been in the outdoors. My family took many hikes and walks in the woods of Maine each summer. I went with my high school science teacher and a group of students out West to visit many of our National Parks. As a child and an adult I have been inspired by the natural world. It's important to preserve these natural places and experiences for future generations.

What is a memorable project you worked on at your school relating to sustainability?

Norquist: Establishing the sustainability committee has been one of the most enlightening experiences of my career. I’m deeply gratified that so many of my colleagues are willing to give their time and energy to the program. Even when they’re tapped out and tired, they keep coming, contributing, and caring. They keep me going when things get tough.

Gaines: One memorable project is a zine (a small self-published magazine) assignment the students in my upper level interdisciplinary course completed on the general topic of race and ethnicity. Students in this course conducted research on a specific issue of their choice and linked that issue to an aspect of environmental sustainability. I was impressed by the range of issues explored in their projects as well as their ability to employ imagination and flexible thinking in their synthesis of ideas.

Del Duca: I participate in a year-long stream study of Mill Creek with my fifth grade class in partnership with the Lower Merion Conservancy. Students learn to assess the health of the stream by taking both chemical tests and doing a macroinvertebrate study. Students learn about local watersheds and how we get our drinking water. Our class learns there are many people working hard to keep our water and streams clean. We learn ways we can reduce water runoff. For example, Shipley students have built a rain garden behind the library to help collect water runoff from our campus.

When not at school, where are you most likely to be found?

Norquist: My own children are 11 and 8, so I’m still in the intense parenting years. My kids are here at Shipley; it’s a unique joy to look out my office window and see my own child playing with her friends during a break between classes. I’m incredibly grateful for that.

Gaines: I’m likely to be found hiking, fishing or enjoying the outdoors when not at school.

Del Duca: I enjoy hiking with my dog on weekends on local trails and enjoy taking bike rides with my family. I grew up in Wilmington, and my first hiking trips with my family were at Brandywine State Park.

Looking forward, what are some of your sustainability hopes and dreams? Who or what inspires you to remain committed to this vision?

Norquist: As soon as we regain our balance from the pandemic, I look forward to working with my colleagues to move sustainability more solidly into the curriculum. What happens in the classrooms is the essence of the school; if sustainability doesn’t live in the classrooms, it doesn’t live in the school. This can only be achieved through true partnerships with teachers in which they are able to lead the way. I’m excited to see what we can develop together.

Gaines: The example of those who have given their lives inspires me to remain committed to the vision of sustainability. Especially people like Berta Caceres, Ken Saro-Wiwa, as well as countless known and unknown others. The commitment to my role is the least I can do.

Del Duca: Some of my sustainability hopes and dreams would be to create a school-wide garden for each division that would be harvested throughout the year. I would love other colleagues, families, and students to be involved with making this work.

Written by Lizi Barrow, Sustainability Intern, Boyer Sudduth Environmental Consultants, on a gap year before attending Bates College, fall 2021.