Gateway School/Crossroads Middle School, Linton Springs Elementary School, and Sykesville Middle School received Institutional Awards in the Carroll County Environmental Advisory Council’s 2012 Environmental Awareness Awards. The purpose of the awards is to promote awareness of the environment and acknowledge exemplary accomplishments in the protection, conservation, and improvement of our environmental resources.

Gateway School/Crossroads Middle School has a “Go Green Initiative” that has completed many different environmentally beneficial projects across the school grounds. Some of these projects include the enhancement and maintenance of an 8,100 square foot labyrinth garden, removal of invasive flora, installation of a native pond garden, and raising horseshoe crabs and bay grasses for educational purposes.

The Green Team at Linton Springs Elementary School has eradicated invasive weeds in their local streambed habitat and meadows, built rain barrels and cold frames, established a compost area, implemented a school recycling program and awareness campaign and planted large community gardens. The garden benefits the county’s food bank and utilizes the support of many community volunteers.

The Sykesville Middle School Green Team focused on the issue of reducing idling from waiting cars. The students did research and created a campaign to educate the public by setting up “Idle Free Zone” signs, writing articles for the school newsletter, and sending information about the program to parents and students.

In addition, Jane Castner, a fourth grade teacher at Freedom Elementary School, received Honorable Mention for instituting a green team at the school. The team has built a compost bin and encourages students to compost their cafeteria waste, filmed service announcements that air on the morning news about saving electricity and reducing waste, and is currently building a greenhouse out of 2-liter bottles.