How much of a difference can one teacher make? When it comes to environmental sustainability, Wendy Turner, a second grade teacher at Mt. Pleasant Elementary School, shows that one teacher can inspire the “greening” of a whole school. Turner’s leadership sparked enthusiastic support and hard work from her peers, students, parents and the school’s administration.
Springside Chestnut Hill Academy (SCH) was recently named a bronze-level Eco-School by the National Wildlife Federation’s Eco-Schools USA program which promotes environmental education, conserving natural resources and “greening” physical structures and grounds. With this award, SCH was recognized for its “healthy living” commitment to getting students outdoors and encouraging physical activity—factors that enhance students’ emotional well-being. Betty Ann Fish, SCH’s Chair of the Physical Education Department and a nationally recognized PE teacher, led the Eco Schools “Healthy Living” initiative with the help of the school’s Green Task Force, sustainability consultants Mary Ann Boyer and Anne Sudduth, and the school community.
