The New Castle County government is excited to welcome back the Great Schools,Clean Streams contest! Beginning Monday, March 24, local schools will compete for a share of the $15,000 prize pool by sharing information with residents on improving local water quality.
Who is Eligible?
All public, charter, private, and parochial schools in New Castle County (kindergarten through 12th grade) are invited to participate. From March 24 to April 11, all county residents (18+) are encouraged to take a pledge at GreatSchoolsCleanStreams.org and assign it to a school of their choice in New Castle County.
Children can also boost their school’s pledge totals by signing a student pledge poster or holding a green shirt day at school. Students and teachers can watch pledge totals as they accumulate by checking the GreatSchoolsCleanStreams.org website.
Srita Koset | Canva
Take the Pledge
Pledging is free and only takes a minute. An online leaderboard will continuously track the number of pledges each school has garnered throughout the contest. When a county resident pledges, they promise to reduce pollution in our waterways by taking five steps:
- Scoop the Poop by collecting and properly disposing of pet waste
- Garden for Water and Wildlife by using chemical-free fertilizers
- Only Rain Down The Drain by keeping trash and debris out of stormwater drains
- Reduce Household Chemicals by purchasing organic cleaning supplies
- Cease the Grease by disposing of cooking grease in the trash instead of the drain
"Great Schools, Clean Streams is a great tool for our Newark Charter School community because it’s an easy way to educate our students on how something local can have a large impact,” said first-grade teacher Katie Miro.
“At Newark Charter Meece Campus, we have beautiful outdoor learning spaces and a variety of ecosystems that rely on our local streams, so our students and families get an up-close understanding of the importance of keeping our streams clean.”
How does the contest work?
Thirty schools will take home a piece of the prize pool. Divided into three categories based on enrollment size, the schools with the most pledges in each group win cash awards:
School Size
- Large (600+ Students): 1st place - $1,500
- Medium (300-599 students): 2nd place - $1,000 and 3rd place - $750
- Small (1-299 students): 21 wild card prizes of $250
All schools with 50 or more pledges will be part of a wild card drawing for 21 awards worth $250 each
Elena Mozhvilo | Unsplash
Jenine Thomas, principal of Olive B. Loss Elementary in the Appoquinimink School District, says her students and teachers love good competition. “Defending our title as reigning Clean Streams champions is serious business,” said Thomas. “In the past, we’ve used our winnings to support our student Activity Day at the end of each school year, so it’s easy to rally support for the contest when we associate the prize money with so much fun!
