Project Learning Tree’s GreenSchools! Program Takes Root
The 35-member GreenSchools! Advisory Team is currently reviewing the draft Investigations for Energy, Waste and Recycling, School Site, Water, and Environmental Quality. The Investigations are also available for review and comment at the PLT website. Thanks to Vicki Arthur and Safiya Samman from the U.S. Forest Service, iTree is now included in the School Site Investigation. iTree enables students to calculate the dollar value of trees on their school site.
Implementation workshops have now started. On April 7-8, Al Stenstrup and James McGirt conducted a GreenSchools! professional development training in Vinton, Iowa as part of AFF’s Learn & Serve grant. The training was hosted by Barb Gigar (Iowa PLT Coordinator with Iowa DNR.) A total of 35 individuals participated in the training, including 17 students, a school principal and head custodian, Kathy McKee (Iowa Science Consultant), Joe Herrity (Iowa Service Learning Coordinator), and Karen Phelps (Benton County Conservation Office.) Special thanks to Barb and her staff for the excellent work they did in making the arrangements for the training.
The workshop began with an introduction to service-learning and select PLT activities from the PreK-8 Guide and
Places We Live
module that support the concepts in the GreenSchools! Investigations. 
On Day 2, students and teachers used monitoring equipment at Vinton/Shellsburg Middle School to investigate the school’s energy use. In the classrooms, they measured light levels, temperatures, relative humidity, and electrical use. Outdoors they completed a map of the school site and measured trees. They then used the iTree website to calculate the value of the trees. The workshop integrated reflection and planning time, both individually and in School Teams.
On April 13-14, training was held for four GreenSchools! in Washington D.C. as part of our partnership with the U.S. Forest Service. Two three-hour sessions were held and one follow-up training will be conducted in May.
In addition, Florida PLT Coordinator Nancy Peterson and Martha Monroe did a two-hour training for Florida PLT Schools interested in participating in the GreenSchools! program. PLT State Coordinators in Indiana, Louisiana, Nevada and New Hampshire will be conducting the PLT GreenSchools! professional development workshops as appropriate for the schools in their state. Future GreenSchools! workshops funded by Learn & Serve are planned for Kansas City (April 21-22) and Houston (May 20-21).
Visit our website for more on GreenSchools! , and for those of you coming to the PLT Conference in Indianapolis, May 4-7, please try to attend the Preconference Workshop on GreenSchools! We look forward to seeing you there!
