Eisenhower High School

RIALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
1321 N. Lilac Ave., Rialto, CA 92376

Recognized by Southern California Edison for their accomplishments
in the Green Schools Program

Eisenhower High School was the grand prizewinner of the 2002 Earth Apple Awards competition. Eisenhower’s savings for September 2001 through February 2002 came to $18,000 for electricity and $2,000 for gas.

“The biggest achievement was raising awareness of conservation in many age groups. We saved the school money. We know we made a difference as students and that we don’t have to wait until we finish school to start being responsible for the environment,” commented student Mark Decolongdon.

Eisenhower High School’s Green Schools program involved three teachers, a custodian, five environmental/energy professionals, four business professionals, and 50 students. Teachers at EHS worked together to help students develop project-based learning assignments. Students brainstormed ideas for projects, established groups, and worked throughout the year on projects based on the theme environmental studies and energy conservation. The projects covered topics such as what is energy, teaching others about energy, learning how to measure energy use/loss, and energy saving recommendations.

Students at EHS took on a variety of energy-related projects during the 2001-2002 school year. One student tracked and graphed electricity and gas use at Eisenhower and presented her findings to the Rialto City Council, Toastmasters, and representatives of Congressman Baca’s office. Another student used the EPA benchmarking tool for rating schools. Other projects at Eisenhower involved creating two websites about energy efficiency, displaying a miniature solar home, and teaching elementary students about energy conservation. Students created a virtual newsletter including a column on energy with hopes of expanding this newsletter to other schools in the county. Nine students worked together to develop a PowerPoint cartoon to go with an energy story that they presented to 8 different elementary classrooms form Kindergarten through third grade. Four students prepared a lesson on energy for six classrooms of fourth and fifth graders. Additionally, twenty-four students participated in the STEM (Savings Through Energy Management) training program allowing them to complete a school-wide technical energy audit. The students’ formal energy audit resulted in energy savings recommendations that have the potential to save over $30,000. The students were amazed at how quickly they could discover where energy was being wasted.

Additionally, ESH assembled a Student Advisory Council (SAC) to act as ambassadors to the community representing the school. These ambassadors made phone calls and personal appearances, sharing the Green Schools Program with others.