Setting up a Program

• Someone needs to have a vision of incorporating Environmental Education into their school, both in the classroom and on the school grounds. This can be anyone involved with the school – principal, teacher, parent, maintenance worker, community member, etc.


• Since a viable program cannot be “carried” by one person, a dedicated group of persons (a mixture of all of the above) needs to be assembled.


• A meeting of the initial group should be scheduled to discuss an overall vision and initial plan for the school.

Initiating Your Program

• Tasks should be given to persons or sub-committees of the group. Each job should be measurable and clearly defined


• Regular meetings should be scheduled to monitor progress and shift gears, if necessary.


• The order in which projects are initiated is very important to the success of the program. Cart before the horse stuff!

Maintaining the Program

• While your school should have an overall plan, don’t expect everything to get done immediately. There will even be some disappointments along the way. Some people will not understand why you are so interested in doing this. It may take awhile before some people understand the point of all of this work!


• Baby steps are the best ones to take in the beginning. Grandiose plans are wonderful, but you need to do a couple of small projects and be successful with them before you tackle large ones.


• Don't feel the need to "reinvent the wheel". Model your program after those completed at other schools, utilize resources and curricula available from a variety of organizations, and don't be afraid to ask for assistance from the community.

Check out the other selections under Key Ingredients for more information and details.