New "Into the bin, out of the box" recycling contest encourages Dallas area students to recycle
Winning school wins free music downloads and a pep rally with special guests from the Dallas Mavericks
DALLAS – October 12, 2010 – The Dallas Independent School District, Waste Management, USA TODAY, Live Nation and the Dallas Mavericks have joined forces to develop “Into the Bin, Out of the Box,” a new educational program and recycling contest to excite Dallas area students about recycling.
The 10-week pilot project launched September 7, 2010, in Dallas area junior high and high schools. This exciting pilot program provides teachers with curriculum designed to enhance their students’ reading skills delivered electronically coupled with a head-to-head recycling competition. Students will be encouraged to reduce paper waste while increasing their recycling activities. In addition, students from the school that recycles the most, win Live Nation digital music downloads and a celebration pep rally with special guests from the Dallas Mavericks.
“It is important that our students learn the importance of taking care of the environment and their communities,’ said Paul Sugg, director – Dallas ISD Science Department. “I thank everyone involved in the “Into the Bin, Out of the Box” educational program for turning this teaching moment into an exciting experience for our students.”
49 participating schools began receiving reading lessons electronically via the USA TODAY Education website. Waste Management, the Dallas Independent School District waste and recycling services provider, supplied each school with classroom and high-traffic common area recycling containers. Each week of the program, Waste Management will track and rank the schools based on the amount of recycled volume collected. The educational and competition-based aspects of the program compliment each other and make recycling fun and intuitive for Dallas students.
“We hope this program helps students realize recycling can be both easy and fun. In addition, students will learn how valuable resources can be recovered from their school and home waste streams,” said Tracey Shrader, regional area vice president for Waste Management. “Between the convenience of the single-stream recycling system and the exciting competitive aspect of the program, we hope to help establish good life-long environmental habits that continue to benefit the entire Dallas metropolitan area into the future.”
“USA TODAY is thrilled to bring together two partners in education, Waste Management and the Dallas Independent School District. Together with these organizations, we are motivating students to improve the quality of their lives by becoming avid readers and good stewards of the environment,” said Diane Barrett, vice president Education at USA TODAY.
About the Dallas Independent School District
Dallas ISD serves almost 158,000 students and it’s the 12th largest school district in the nation. In 2005 Dallas ISD had 6 exemplary schools. This year, there are 66, along with 59 recognize schools. In addition, more students graduated from high school this year in Dallas than at any time since the mid-1980s.
About Waste Management
Waste Management, based in Houston, Texas, is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management services in North America. Our subsidiaries provide collection, transfer, recycling and resource recovery, and disposal services. We are also the largest residential recycler in North America and a leading developer, operator and owner of waste-to-energy and landfill gas-toenergy facilities in the United States. Our customers include residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers throughout North America. To learn more visit www.wm.com or www.thinkgreen.com.
About USA TODAY
USA TODAY is a multi-platform news and information media company. Founded in 1982, USA TODAY’s mission is to serve as a forum for better understanding and unity to help make the USA truly one nation. Today, through its newspaper, website and mobile platforms, USA TODAY connects readers and engages the national conversation. USA TODAY, the nation's number one newspaper in print circulation with an average of more than 1.8 million daily, and USATODAY.com, an award-winning newspaper website launched in 1995, reach a combined
5.9 million readers daily. USA TODAY is a leader in mobile applications with more than five million downloads on mobile devices. The USA TODAY brand also includes USA TODAY Education and USA TODAY Sports Weekly. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).
About the Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks began as a National Basketball Association (NBA) expansion franchise in 1980. The club’s 2009-10 record of 55-27 was the tenth consecutive season with more than 50 wins, which is the third longest streak in NBA history. In addition to on-court success, the Mavs are also committed to making a difference in North Texas through community outreach programs and the Dallas Mavericks Foundation.