Community Service & Global Citizenship
Whitby's Community Service/Service Learning program encourages students to improve our school community and address needs in the greater community beyond the Whitby Pond. Students connect with local organizations to plan, act, and reflect upon service experiences.
Recent projects include working with Christopher Swain and organizing Ethical Electronic Recycling at Whitby; organization of a food drive, including delivering donated goods and volunteering time at a local food bank; and Pennies for Peace, an organization benefiting school children in Afghanistan.
Whitby Celebrates the Earth!
Whitby School enjoyed a big Earth week celebration from April 19-23. Students were engaged in various activities celebrating our planet, learning about protecting our natural resources and learning about things each one of us can do to make a positive impact on our environment. Click here to see the full schedule of events!
But, did you know that Whitby doesn't just celebrate Earth week one week a year? Whitby is environmentally conscious every day! Here are just some of the things we do at Whitby School each day to do our part to protect the planet:
- Whitby uses "green" (non-toxic) cleaning products
- Whitby campus garden grows organic fruits, flowers and vegetables
- Whitby garden compost includes scraps from student/faculty lunches
- Whitby promotes clean air with No Idling signs posted on campus
- Parent and school communications are entirely paperless
- Ongoing recycling program throughout all our campus building
Whitby's "green" facilities:
Our Children's House renovations
- used the existing building rather than tearing it down
- recycled some existing material
- used linoleum made from linseed oil for flooring
- used nontoxic non VOC paints
- installed formaldehyde-free cabinetry where possible
Ongoing:
- all energy efficient light bulbs at school
- recycled products used for toilet paper and paper towels
- hand sanitizers are non-toxic
- recycled paper used for photocopying and printers
- all electronic communication between school and home
Thinking Globally, Acting Locally:
- Whitby participated in promoting Earth Hour
- Our Edible Classroom curriculum is using recycled pots from water bottles and newspapers
- Nutrition policy promotes buying organic and we serve organic produce as snacks
- Coat drives and Whitby Uniform Exchange supports the re-use of goods
Millennium Promise
Thursday, May 15 was an historic day for Whitby School and the Millennium Promise Alliance. Jeffrey Sachs' vision for ending extreme poverty by 2015 includes an initiative to bring young people out of isolation and help them establish connections with the larger world via the Internet. This aspect of his plan took a significant step forward with the establishment of the first School 2 School exchange program between a US school (Whitby) and Millennium Village school in Africa (Omwicwamba School, located in the remote village of Ruhiira). Millennium Promise seeks to end extreme poverty through initiatives in health, farming and education in some of the poorest places in the world. Click here to continue reading.
Millennium Promise website
Press Release
