Garden coordinator Dan Phelps talks outside of Hillcrest School as he, Nancy O'Connor, project coordinator, left, Tammy Baker, Hillcrest principal, and Lily Siebert, coordinator, partially obscured, survey the school property in search of a spot for a school garden on Friday, Feb. 11, 2011. The group plans to break ground on April 2.

Yay!

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment announced today that three Lawrence schools have received $1,875 in grants for a composting program.

They are:

• Hillcrest — $375.

• Sunset Hill — $750.

• West Junior High School — $750.

The schools have partnered with the Community Mercantile Education Foundation as part of a “Growing Food, Growing Health” project and have started gardens. The goal is to change the way students interact with food. Nancy O’Connor, director of education and outreach at The Merc and project coordinator, applied for the grants.

The Lawrence schools were among 26 schools that received $68,702 in Waste Management Green School grants. The awards ranged from $200 to $4,500.

“These grants to schools not only have the direct benefits of conserving landfill space, natural resources and energy, they teach students lessons that can be practiced at home and for a lifetime.”

— Dr. Robert Moser, KDHE secretary

If you are interested in learning more about Kansas Green Schools and how you can participate in this statewide initiative, visit www.kanasgreenschools.org.