Baltimore County, MD Hello Baltimore County, 1 Sep 2016

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From YouTube: Join the Litter Challenge!

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Debbie Phelps of the Education Foundation shares how anyone can beat litter in their community and help their favorite Baltimore County public school win an environmental grant.

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Welcome to hello, baltimore county., I'm your host, ellen kobler.

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If you're, like me, litter, really kind of bugs you., it's unsightly, washes into our streams and pollutes the bay.

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Well, baltimore county has a challenge for everyone out there to help make a difference and help your favorite baltimore county public school at the same time.

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It's the team, bcps clean, green 15, litter challenge,.

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And here to tell us about, it is debbie phelps.

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when she's not pool-side at the olympics, she's, the executive director of the education foundation of baltimore county.

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Thank you so much for joining us. a pleasure to be here!. Tell us about the clean, green 15 challenge.

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Team bcps, clean green 15 is an award-winning initiative.

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That we started four years ago. when I say "we": the county government, with the school system, with the education foundation.

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and what it entails. Are our schools doing 15-minute pickups of litter.

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uh Huh. now we know the importance of having litter in our school taken care of..

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This is in our school community,, bringing our students outside.

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Into the courtyards, into school, property,.

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But into the properties of the school community and to be able to make it a better place for all of us to live..

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Very nice!, and when you talk about team bcps,, the idea is that everybody out there is part of the team with the school system:.

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Businesses, communities, people interested in parks,, etc.

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How can they play a role? scouts! such wonderful environmental advocates that we have out there.

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To be able to,, you know, go to the school, talk to the principal..

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Let's make a plan as to how we can make sure that we keep our school community clean.

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you know,. We want to make sure that, for generations to come, that we do not have litter, that's polluting, our wonderful waterways and our grounds.

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so, get involved. By doing your 15-minute cleanups,.

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Recording them on the baltimore county website., we tabulate them for bags picked up.

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As well as volunteers who participate.

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so we want to rally around our community and get everyone involved.

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You have some pretty impressive numbers. This year.

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the 2016 program had 5,600 volunteers.

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Picking up some 3,100 bags of litter, --.

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3,000 bags of litter that was scattered around the whole county.

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In more than 400 cleanups all around the county., they were bags big bags,, medium-sized bags, --.

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Every bag counted., but you know, it's every student counted,, every community member counted.

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To make this a great initiative for our county.

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And I think what's neat: is this notion of the school community.

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So, anybody out there -- a family taking a walk, can take a bag,.

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A scout troop,, a lot of bridge clubs, senior center --.

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Anybody can decide: "you, know what? as part of our normal programming and our normal activities,.

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We're going to take 15 minutes, go outside--".

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Unfortunately,, it's not hard to find litter anywhere anymore, now.!

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That's very true., very true.

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So just spend 15 minutes, pick it up,.

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Go to the school system website,, which is bcps.org.

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Just kind of type in "clean green 15," it'll pop up, and then you fill out a little form.

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correct.. How does that work?.

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And you go to the school., so your school will be on there. if not, add your school to the database and then just follow the different columns as to what they want you to record.

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But I think it's really important for our community to be able to communicate with our schoolhouses to make sure that they know that we're working together for a better environment for everyone., because not only are the school kids and the teachers.

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Recording cleanups, but anybody out there can record a cleanup.

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And then --, this is the really interesting thing. -- they designate the school to get credit for their cleanup,.

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And then what happens when the schools --, the winning schools, are chosen?.

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Well, we sit down as a committee and we look at our data.

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And take a look at the volunteers and the litter that was picked up.

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By the different groups and then we're able to award grants,, which is very exciting for the foundation., that's one of our --. What I call our trifectas of awarding.

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Our school grant money to be able to align with the school progress plan.

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And to be able to do something within their school, that's going to impact academics as well as behavior.

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so,. We have great partners and we're able to award grant money.

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One school this year got $4,000 in grant money to continue that environmental literacy project at their schoolhouse.

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So again, putting their arms out and embracing the community to be a part of it.

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Nice!, so not only does the litter get picked up,, but the school wins a prize,, which is the grant money.

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And then they put that money towards.

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A long-lasting environmental project at the school.

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Is that what you're saying?.

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Absolutely. at the end, we celebrate. they get banners for their schoolhouse to show that not only are they possibly a green school,, but they are the recipient of a green school initiative.

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nice! and what sort of projects have some of the winning schools developed?.

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It's been kind of an array of projects.

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Some will focus on their courtyards.. Some will focus on the environment with the butterfly gardens.

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Some will do reading gardens.. Some will -- we're looking for historical landmarks around the chesapeake bay.

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Where we can acknowledge those types of areas.

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To be able to have children see the history of the region in which they grew up.

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To see how kind of everything connects and how right in their own schoolyard, they can experience.

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Some of what they're learning about in the classroom? absolutely., even trout in the classroom, we had that.

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Really?, that was a great project.

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So it was an aquarium with trout in the classroom?.

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Yes, yes. and then they went and they released them.

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but,, the creativity and the innovativeness of our schoolhouses,.

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It's going to be up to them as to how they see it's going to best fit their needs.

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okay,, and you mentioned some of the environmental groups.

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That are just existing out in the community that do good work on their own.

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How have they participated in the -- I'll say it right? -- the team bcps clean, green 15, challenge?.

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Well, I was talking to one of those individuals yesterday,.

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And they're so passionate about cleaning up their area.

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And to be a part of the schoolhouses., so we want all those groups to come and contact us --.

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Contact you, contact me --, so we can put them in partnership with the schools to be able to join together.

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okay, and have you heard anything from teachers or students.

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About their response to the program?.

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I know it's very exciting.. I was at a professional development last week.

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And talking to potential and green school-- maryland green schools, schools, --.

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And they're excited about being able to participate this year and getting more involved -- even more than what they were last year, -- to be able to be possibly a recipient of that grant. Money.

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Very nice!, and would you offer us your perspective as a former principal in baltimore county public schools.

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How a program like this can kind of--, does it add enthusiasm into the school community??

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How does it tie in?.

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Well, I really feel that as a former principal of a school,, we know the importance of community and we want to be able to have the community to wrap their arms around us and be a part of our school environment..

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So,, I think, an initiative of this nature with the county government,.

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Along with the foundation,, along with the school community,.

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Is a win-win for everyone. and having,? I feel,.

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Children working with those who are established within our community.

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To learn from them, -- almost like a mentoring, type of relationship, --.

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Is so important for our school and for our students.

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Well,, you know,, you certainly hear -- and you as a teacher,, an educator, know --, that if you want someone,.

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Especially a child, to truly learn something,, you engage them in it,.

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Sometimes even physically engage them.

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have you--. How does that work as far as kind of getting in kids' heads.

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That litter is not okay?.

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Well, you know,, I really think--. As a principal,, I led by example.

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So,, when I would go down the hallways of my schoolhouse,, I would bend down, pick up the trash.

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So I think, when students see adults in that manner,.

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Of being responsible for the environment in which they live,.

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It just ends up kind of trickling down to them.

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And they see the importance of it and the responsibility of it..

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We want our schools to have very high expectations and our students to have high expectations in our schools.

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so, again,. It's a win-win with our school community.

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Coming into our schoolhouses and joining partnership and building relationship., all right, very good. in the minute, or so we have left,.

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Will you just give a quick summary of the team bcps clean, green 15, litter challenge.

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And how anybody out there can be involved..

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Well, it's going on now.

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It started in may of 2016, before the school year, ended.

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So we have it ongoing through april of 2017.

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And so,, what's it's going to entail -- I'm going to very actively ask people to go out there.

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And communicate with their schools to get involved.

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remember to go to the baltimore county website and type in "clean green 15.", bcps.org..., bcps.org,, absolutely.

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Find out what's going on and then to be able to start getting those clean-ups recorded.

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and everyone can be a part of this, because we're all part of baltimore county.

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Yep, and as we say,, unfortunately, litter is not that hard to find.

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And a grocery bag,, a couple of people, 15 minutes,.

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You can make a big difference.. You can make a big difference.

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We want everyone to be involved. all right,. Well, thank you very much.. You are more than welcome.

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Remember, team bcps clean green 15 --, it's for everyone.

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Very nice. all right, and thank you for watching hello, baltimore, county.

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and remember,. When it comes to litter,, don't drop it, pick it up.

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And we encourage you to connect with baltimore county government.

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On facebook and twitter. we'll see you next time.

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