Mary Phillips, a seventh-grade science teacher at Fletcher Middle School, has been selected as this year's recipient of the River Educator Award, which recognizes an individual who has made exceptional efforts to teach others about the St. Johns, and to encourage greater appreciation of and support for the river.
During the past four years, Ms. Phillips has utilized the St. Johns River to enrich her lessons and integrate real-world scenarios into the curriculum.
Some of the projects and activities she has planned for her students include identification of pollution sources to the river, guest instructors and speakers, water testing demonstrations, letter writing campaigns and much more. Her encouragement has resulted in efforts by her students to promote recycling practices at the school and to encourage Home Depot to carry slow-release fertilizers.
Last year, a group of her students were featured in the Riverkeeper's documentary
Riverkeeper 'The St John's Youth.' In the film, students talked about how fertilizer run-off can have a negative effect on the health of the river. The documentary has run several times since November 2008 on PBS.
"The documentary allowed students to see that their ideas can be used outside of the classroom, and that they are part of the ongoing movement to protect the St. John's River," said Phillips.
Phillips's students have also contributed ideas about how to save money at their school. Two years ago, a group of her students presented a proposal on low flow toilets for Fletcher Middle, the same time the district was investigating cost savings measures for the school. The students had the opportunity to present their findings to district personnel, which led to them working along with Johnson Controls during the following school year to implement the cost saving ideas, including a water saving toilet.
"I believe it is important for students to be involved in activities like this because they are realistic. The students who were involved with the water saving toilets saw that their ideas could actually be carried out and make a positive impact on our school," Phillips said.
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