Center Wins MASB Education Excellence Award!

Copper Country ISD will proudly display a street sign proclaiming it as an Education Excellence Award winner. The sign, similar to those recognizing a district’s athletic achievements, is being presented to the school district in recognition for winning the 2003 Education Excellence Award for its “Kids Can Make A Difference” Earth Day program. The awards program is conducted by Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) and sponsored by SET SEG, School Insurance Specialists.

SET SEG Account Executive Jim Miller will present the Education Excellence Award street sign to Shawn Oppliger, Director, Western Upper Peninsula Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education, and to Paul Ollila, superintendent of the Copper Country ISD, at 11:00 AM, Thursday, Oct. 16 at the Copper Country ISD on 809 Hecla Street in Hancock. The sign will be proudly displayed outdoors near the Copper Country ISD office building.

Photo: A representative of SET SEG Insurance Services presents the MASB Education Excellence road sign to Copper Country Intermediate School District superintendant, Paul Ollila, and Western UP Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education director, Shawn Oppliger. Loret Roberts, the Center's administrative assistant is on the rear.

The Western U.P. Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education is the official sponsor of the “Kids Can Make A Difference” Earth Day program. The program invites K-12 classes and community youth groups from Baraga, Houghton, Keewenaw, Gogebic and Ontonagon counties to initiate an Earth Day project in their communities that demonstrates that kids can make a difference. Students design and implement an action project that enhances the school or community, or select an environmental topic to study and teach others about. Examples of projects organized by students and youth groups participating in past years includes conducting school-wide recycling or litter pick-ups, establishing a school garden, constructing bird-nesting boxes, peer-reading between high school and elementary students, and designing Earth-friendly shopping bags. All participating groups receive an Earth Day award certificate, a token of recognition, and present their project to their school and Center staff. Projects are also featured on the Center’s web site: http://wupcenter.mtu.edu.

In addition, all participants have their names entered into a drawing for an environmental education field trip or an environmental education toolkit. Nearly 2,000 youths have participated in the program since it began in 2001.
As an Education Excellence Award recipient, the Copper Country ISD and Western UP Center for Science, Mathematics and Environmental Education were honored at the Michigan Association of School Board’s regional meeting in the spring where they received a trophy and presented a brief description of the program. The wining program will also be showcased in MASB publications and at the MASB Fall Conference in Detroit.

MASB developed the Education Excellence Award program 11 years ago to honor and give visibility to exemplary and innovative educational programs that foster school improvement and student achievement. An independent panel of judges evaluates hundreds of entries submitted within 10 categories, selecting only those that are truly worthy of recognition. Only 32 districts won Education Excellence Awards in 2003.

MASB unites school boards in the common cause of improving public education. It provides leadership development, government relations, legal counsel, public relations, communications and a variety of field services to member districts.

SET SEG is a non-profit provider of complete insurance services to Michigan school districts. Founded by MASB in 1971, SET SEG provides fringe benefits, property/casualty and/or workers’ compensation insurance to more than 550 districts in the state.

The “Kids Can Make A Difference” Earth Day program recently received a grant for $4,892 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to continue the program in 2004. Registration forms for 2004 projects will soon be distributed to schools and community groups, and will also be available on the Center’s website. Western Upper Peninsula Center for Science, Mathematics & Environmental Education is a partnership of Copper Country & Gogebic-Ontonagon Intermediate School Districts and Michigan Technological University serving 21 school districts and communities in Houghton, Baraga, Gogebic, Ontonagon and Keweenaw Counties.

Western Upper Peninsula Center for Science, Mathematics & Environmental Education
Michigan Technological University
1400 Townsend Dr., Houghton, MI 49931-1295
Tel: 906-487-3341

Email:jchadde@mtu.edu

Website: http://www.wupcenter.mtu.edu/

© 2002, 2003
For Educational Use Only