Local Water District Brings Conservation to the Classroom
More than 300 Rowland Unified students participated in water and solar energy challenges.
June 21, 2024 — With the end of the school year, Rowland Water District (RWD) celebrated student winners of its two annual outreach programs — the Water Awareness Poster Contest and the Mini Solar Challenge.
Each year, RWD hosts a poster contest encouraging students of all ages to create posters that depict water-wise habits at home, in the community, in recreation, in the environment, or new water-saving ideas for the future. The activity inspires participants to consider the importance of our most valuable natural resource — water.
“We are pleased with the results from this year’s Water Awareness Poster Contest,” said Board President Szu Pei Lu-Yang. “It is wonderful to see so many students and teachers embracing and emphasizing the importance of water conservation through this interactive assignment.”
RWD’s poster contest was judged based on creativity, spelling, and originality. The District picked the top three elementary, middle, and high school posters and awarded the students with an Amazon gift card. This year, 34 teachers participated and RWD supplied the first 10 teachers to submit their classrooms’ artwork with a free art kit valued at $70, complete with crayons and colored pencils.
Eight of the 14 schools in the District participated in this year’s poster contest. A total of 1,451 sheets of paper were requested and delivered to classrooms, and RWD received 660 posters, of which 20 were judged internally by RWD staff.
Of all the submissions received, nine posters were sent to Metropolitan Water District (MWD) for judging in their Regional Poster Contest. Winning posters came from the following schools: Blandford Elementary School, Rowland Elementary School, Wedgeworth Elementary School, Alvarado Intermediate School, and Nogales High School. These schools were also recently recognized during a special Board of Directors celebration.
RWD also recently wrapped up the 3rd Annual Mini Solar Challenge. The project aimed at 5th and 6th grade classrooms expanded throughout the school year and challenged the students in all aspects of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM).
“Each year, we’re thrilled to see the level of engagement with the Mini Solar Challenge,” said Brittnie Gildea, Education & Community Outreach Coordinator. “The variety of assignments allows students to flex their unique skills through writing, designing, and building while teaching them to be environmentally conscious.”
Fifth and sixth-grade students completed a written assignment and underwent the Public Service Announcement (PSA) Challenge which tasked them with creating a public service announcement focused on energy conservation. This challenge culminated in students building a miniature solar-powered boat, before racing them against other schools in the RWD service area.
Participating schools this year include Blandford Elementary School, Rowland Elementary School, Jellick Elementary School, and Yorbita Elementary School. Over 305 students from eight different classrooms took part in the challenges throughout the school year, with the winning student taking home a $50 Amazon gift card, second place receiving a $35 Amazon gift card, and third place receiving a $25 Amazon gift card. Winning students from the Mini Solar Challenge were also awarded a medal to commemorate their achievements.
Learn more at rwd.org.
