Explore Ecology Finalist in the CLASSY Awards
We are so proud to announce that Explore Ecology has been selected out of 2,400 Nominees in the West as a Top 5 Regional Finalist in Environmental Protection for the 4th Annual CLASSY Awards. The CLASSY Awards is the largest philanthropic awards ceremony in the country, celebrating the greatest charitable achievements by nonprofit organizations, socially conscious businesses, and individuals worldwide. In 2011, nearly 2,000 organizations and volunteers were nominated for a CLASSY Award, and their collective efforts impacted the lives of more than 200,000,000 people in 71 countries worldwide.
Here’s what caught the CLASSY judges attention from our Achievement Story — Every year, over 14,000 students learn how to be greener citizens and creative thinkers through Art From Scrap‘s Explore Ecology program which teaches a wide array of classes to area youth, grades K-12 and adults. Lesson and field trip topics include: Waste Reduction: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Composting, School Gardens, and Water Quality. Elementary school children participating in Explore Ecology’s environmental education programs learn how their actions affect the environment.
To help us win you can vote for “Explore Ecology” by visiting http://www.stayclassy.org/classy-awards/vote. The voting period ends at 11:59 P.M. PST on July 26, 2012 and the official winners will be announced on July 31st.
Josh was born and raised in Santa Barbara, where his passion and curiosity for the environment began and has continued to grow. During his undergraduate studies, Josh pursued this interest at the University of California at Santa Cruz, receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies.
Melissa Dodos developed her passion for creative reuse as a mother of four and elementary educator over the past 25 years. She loves to inspire creativity by connecting people with resources and ideas.
Veronica grew up in San Diego and spent four years in San Luis Obispo studying Animal Science at Cal Poly. As an undergrad she learned lots about livestock, agriculture, and wildlife.
Stephanie began her journey as an educator over twenty years ago working as a preschool teacher in Washington state for a cooperative preschool program affiliated with Whatcom Community College. She loved observing the wonder and curiosity of the children and bringing them out into nature to explore the natural world. She continued her love for learning and got her teaching license and then her Montessori certification and worked as an elementary teacher in Tribal, Public, and Montessori schools. She collaborated to create a school garden and her students loved it so much that it became a special place where they could garden, read, explore, play, and it provided a safe sanctuary for students to calm down and reset when they were having difficult moments.
Morgan’s mermaid soul is always seeking adventure—swimming a relay across the Santa Barbara Channel and taking the first photo of a newborn orca off Anacapa Island being standout experiences close to home.
Lindsay Johnson
I voted for your classy organisation!