4 EDCAL May 28, 2018
Green Ribbon Schools award winners honored
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Tom Torlakson has nominated one Califor-
nia school district and three individual pub-
lic schools to compete in the U.S. Depart-
ment of Education Green Ribbon Schools
(ED-GRS) recognition program, which
honors schools that conserve resources
while promoting health and environmental
literacy.
“Green Ribbon schools are leading
the way in resource conservation, health
and wellness and environmental literacy,”
Torlakson said.
Torlakson stressed that green schools are
especially important now that the environ-
ment is facing so many threats.
“California won’t reach our smart
and ambitious climate goals without the
public sector – and especially without
public schools – leading the way,” he said.
“We need to protect our magnificent and
precious natural resources and learn more
about topics such as the causes of glob-
al warming and the acidification of the
oceans.”
The public school nominees are:
• Jack London Community Day School,
Valley Glen.
• Monterey Road Elementary School,
Atascadero.
• Tahoe Truckee Unified School Dis-
trict.
• Top of the World Elementary School,
Laguna Beach.
These are also California “Green
Achievers,” the highest honor in the Cali-
fornia Green Ribbon Schools recognition
program.
Green Ribbon Schools demonstrate
exemplary achievement in three “Pillars.”
Pillar 1: reduce environmental impact and
costs; Pillar 2: improve the health and
wellness of schools, students and staff; and
Pillar 3: provide effective environmental
education that teaches many disciplines
and is especially good at effectively incor-
porating science, technology, engineering,
and mathematics education, civic skills and
green career pathways.
The California Green Ribbon Schools
recognition award uses the applications
submitted for nomination to ED-GRS to
recognize schools and school districts for
environmental excellence.
California is one of 25 states as well
See GREEN, page 8
Women in Education
Leadership Collaborative
Collaborative participants networked with each other during the course of the training.
WOMEN
Continued from page 1
herself in the students she teaches at Burbank.
Some come from the same migrant background
that she came from, and her experience in
the classroom and with the Collaborative has
offered her an opportunity to grow.
“I fell in love with this school and this com-
munity,” she said. “Many people told me this
was a tough school but when I walk down the
halls and see the faces in my students, I realize
there is hope and there will always be hope.”
Elizabeth Villanueva’s hard work in her
community and with her students is being
recognized on a national level. Earlier this year,
the National Education Association nominated
her as a finalist for their Social Justice Activist
award. The award recognizes educators who en-
gage in social and/or racial justice activism with
parents and the community, among others.
“I never expected to be nominated for some-
thing like this award and I’m still processing it,”
Elizabeth Villanueva said. “I have a real passion
for what I do.”
The benefits of the Collaborative include
in