A Decade-Old Tradition of Recycling Continues at Lipscomb Academy Lower School Honoring America Recycles Day, Nov. 15
Coinciding with America Recycles Day, third-grade students at the Lower School have organized the community event for more than 10 years as part of the academy’s curriculum standards. Science students are taught to recognize that humans produce waste through their actions and that some waste can be considered hazardous to the environment and society. Additionally, students learn how hazardous waste can enter our bodies, air, water and land. As part of the school’s commitment to the reduction of hazardous waste in our community, third-grade students participate in an outreach event aimed at the diversion of hazardous waste from landfills.
In the classroom, third-grade students learn about household waste, the impact it has on our environment and how to inform others that the decisions we make now can change the world tomorrow. By hosting the annual e-waste and recyclables collection event, our community outreach ties education and communication together to put students’ newfound knowledge into action,” states Ginger Reasonover, Lipscomb Academy Lower School science lab teacher and environmental co-coordinator.
Several community partners that guarantee zero-landfill refuse of the donated items are joining with Lipscomb Academy Lower School for the event. thriftSMART will be collecting gently-used clothes and household items. Metro Nashville Police will be on-site to accept unused and out-of-date prescriptive and over-the-counter medications. Tri-Star Recycling will collect electronic waste items. The Tennessee Attorney General Division of Consumer Affairs will be accepting sensitive materials for secure shredding. Metro Nashville Public Works will collect compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs and fluorescent tubes.
As part of Lipscomb Academy’s mission to serve its global community, the school partners with Safe Haven Family Shelter and thriftSMART.
“By partnering with thriftSmart, we have extended the learning from the classroom to show students that you can make a big difference with a small act for your community,” stated Reasonover. “For every 10 pounds of clothing and household goods donated to thriftSMART, thriftSMART gives a $1 gift card to women living at Safe Haven to use at the shelter’s Christmas Shop so that families can purchase Christmas presents for their children. Fourth-grade students at the academy participate in planning a Christmas party for the children living at Safe Haven and cook evening meals for families to share together throughout the year, and this past Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, a dozen students participated in Safe Haven’s Hike for the Homeless, raising $1400 as a team and winning the Golden Shoe spirit award,” continued Reasonover.
Lipscomb Academy Lower School has a long history of being an environmental steward and has received many accolades for its commitment to being community-minded. The Lower School was named the 2019 Primary School of the Year by the Tennessee Recycling Coalition. In 2018, the Lower School was named a fifth-time recipient of the National Primary School of the Year by the National Energy Education Development (NEED) Project and a sixth-time winner of the Good Sports Always Recycle program. In 2016, the school was named Primary School of the Year by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s Office of Energy Programs and was recognized in 2015 by the U.S. Department of Energy as the Primary School of the Year. In 2013, the U.S. Department of Education designated the Lower School a Green Ribbon School and received the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Award. The school earned first-place honors in Tennessee as part of Disney’s Planet Challenge in 2012.
During the 2018 America Recycles Day, Metro Police collected 105 pounds of medications, the Division of Consumer Affairs shredded 3,000 pounds of sensitive documents, Metro Public Works collected 288 fluorescent bulbs, thriftSMART accepted 2,500 pounds of clothing and household items, 45 pounds of plastic bags were donated to Trex to make composite decking material, 300 pounds of plastic bottles and 91 pounds of aluminum cans were donated (equating to 6,000 bottles and 3,200 cans) and 412 pounds of batteries were dropped off. This annual event provides a convenient location for the community to donated recyclable items not traditionally accepted at recycling centers. Over the last decade, Lipscomb Academy’s Lower School event has diverted over 150,000 pounds of e-waste from local landfills.
The following is a complete list of recyclables accepted at Lipscomb Academy’s community e-waste and recyclables collection event on Nov. 15, 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Lipscomb Academy Lower School is located at 4517 Granny White Pike, Nashville, TN.
Accepted items include:
- small batteries, alkaline and rechargeable (A, AA, AAA, C, D, 9-volt, button) – no car batteries
- compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) and fluorescent tubes
- cell phones
- unused and out-of-date medications, both prescriptive and over the counter
- ink cartridges
- plastic bags (grocery store, department store, dry cleaning, etc.)
- aluminum cans
- plastic beverage bottles
- newspaper
- glass collection
- gently used clothing, toys, books, small furniture and household items
- secure shredding will be available on-site to shred sensitive materials
E-waste items include:
- desktop and laptop PCs
- keyboards and mice
- printers and fax machines
- switches/hubs/routers/firewalls
- DVD/VCR/stereo equipment
- scanners and POS equipment
- networking equipment tablets and E-readers
- LCD Screens (no LCD TVs)
- hard drives, memory and PC parts
- laptop batteries servers and racks
- circuit boards (*only one cracked LCD PC monitor per car)
- UPS battery backups (*only on television or CRT monitor per car)