Drivers behind the sorta-short, yellow bus may expect to see the Alliance Public Schools vehicle full of students while driving across town on a Thursday afternoon. Instead, the driver and one student shared the ride with a load of cardboard. The bus and a van make regular stops at the Keep Alliance Beautiful trailers and recycling center as part of the district’s ongoing partnership with KAB.
Susan Banks, job coach and paraprofessional at Alliance High School, drives the silver van — always loaded with ten or so bags of paper. Sophomore Richard Nordstrom usually rides shotgun and helps pull the bags across our concrete floor to the mixed paper bin.
The role Banks stepped into at the start of the current school year was created more than a decade ago. She explained that part of the position has existed since Deb Dopheide was KAB’s executive director. “(KAB) put a program in place with students to assist with that (recycling) to help with job skills. It helped both parties.” Students had been able to take part in hands-on tasks such as sorting and feeding the balers during previous years.
Banks works directly with one, sometimes two, students. However, she emphasized that “all of the students in all the schools” help with recycling by using their classrooms’ bins. This year, due to ongoing health reasons, only paper is deposited — compared to plastic and aluminum in years past.
Sitting at a round table in the high school commons recently, Nordstrom talked about how he enjoys helping pick up paper from the schools during second period at AHS on Thursday and elsewhere every Friday. “I just love doing it all,” he said. “Something nice, fun. I’m OK with it.” While on the route, “(you) see a lot of people you know,” he added. “They’re smiling and happy and doing their business . . .”
Nordstrom helps out with recycling at home as well. “Our parents decided to do it for a lot of reasons. (They) didn’t like all the trash bags we used up. No. 2, it was something good we could do — our grandparents do it,” Nordstrom commented.
Banks noted it is not just recycling. She highlighted the reduce side of the “reduce-reuse-recycle” triangle — “teachers know to print less. They use AHS Papercut software (and) encourage students to print less, print double-sided when possible.”
Concerning her students that work with KAB, “I just like that it gives kids that don’t do well with a traditional sitdown setting something to look forward to,” Banks said.
Short school weeks and times of the year that generate more handouts are among challenges due to scheduling and heavier bags.
Recycling in Alliance’s District No. 6 looks different from year to year depending on factors ranging from the need to reduce excess electronics to how many students “feed the bin” in the cafeteria. Superintendent Dr. Troy Unzicker outlined how the process flows this year: We place the containers for cardboard at high use areas, allow KAB to bring their educational coordinator into our buildings, and share KAB info with staff. For sporting and other extracurricular events there are recycling containers marked at the gym for recycling purposes.
Unzicker agreed most students/faculty have a favorable view of recycling.
Potential for recycling throughout APS is fluid. Working at KAB, I always like to see our partners, school, business or otherwise, willing to explore new avenues. Unzicker said he is “always open to ideas.”
Considering recycling district-wide, Unzicker commented, “I believe it is very important. I have served on the KAB board since I arrived in Alliance. Educating people, especially children is very important.”