Announcing Healthy Schools Heroes 2013
Every year to mark the anniversary of the March 18, 1937 Texas School Explosion,
I salute Healthy Schools Heroes whose extraordinary sense of
responsibility and leadership is dedicated to protecting students and
staff from chemical hazards and unhealthy school conditions.
This
year’s Healthy Schools Heroes are both widely admired as teachers,
consultants and colleagues and respected for their proven ability to
help schools achieve excellence in science, pest control, and
environmental quality.
By example, each Hero is an inspiration to break the silence about
school hazards and bring the Lessons of the 1937 Texas School Explosion to
today’s schools.
Healthy Schools Heroes 2013
President, Science & Safety Consulting Service
Fayetteville, NC
Safety is a priority. Like previous Healthy Schools Heroes, their unshakable priority is safety.
Continuous Improvement. Their websites, newsletters, manuals, workshops and other
resources testify to their values as well as their deep understanding of the
daily decisions and challenges of managing classrooms, budgets, facility
maintenance and operations and community relations. They are tireless in their commitment to giving people the knowledge and competencies to enable them to do a good job and a safe job.
Partnerships. Each is remarkably gifted in building
enduring personal and high value professional relationships in many roles at
many levels. They partner with school district administrators, science
teachers, parent groups, facility managers and custodians, academic and
research institutions and professional organizations. Their approach to training and consulting
strengthens multi-disciplinary, multi-agency, and organizational
connections.
Accountability. They also have been instrumental in
achieving the public policy and legislative initiatives that provide
accountability. Their expert guidance is repeatedly called on to help schools
resolve hazardous chemistry lab conditions or pest control problems, to help
schools meet codes and regulations, and even win national recognition.
Professional Development. Linda does
assessments, training and ongoing professional development to help schools
comply with the North Carolina’s Act to Implement Science Safety Measures in
the Public Schools. It requires local boards of education to certify that
schools are properly equipped with safety equipment and pre-service teachers
are properly educated on safety measures. Janet works to promote high quality
implementation of the Texas' School Integrated Pest Management (IPM) law.
It requires all school districts to have an integrated pest management program
(IPM) and a designated IPM Coordinator.
No one is alone. They
listen. They learn. They teach. They care. They keep in touch. No one is alone
with a question or a problem because Linda Stroud and Janet Hurley are only a
phone call or email away.
Janet Hurley
and Linda Stroud both emphasize the value of face-to-face conversations as the
key to their effectiveness and their ongoing satisfaction in their work. They have thousands of grateful admirers who benefit
from their inspiring leadership and reap the daily reward of safer children and
safer schools.
Healthy Schools Heroes 2013
Inspiring Nominees. Two additional inspiring professionals deserve special
recognition for reaching out as advocates for precautionary action and best practices in schools.
~ 0 ~
Background The
Healthy Schools Hero Award is part of a campaign to make March 18 a day
to remember the worst school disaster in American history, a gas
explosion that killed more than 300 people, mostly students, just
minutes before the end of the day in their new state-of-the-art public
school.
A case study and cautionary tale. This
story needs to be part of our national legacy because the flaws that
led to the tragic explosion are still too common in many schools today –
false economies in school design, building, and operations, unheeded
warnings and indifference to hazards and precautionary measures.
The Unfinished Legacy As
a result of the disaster, a law was passed to require adding a warning
odor to natural gas, thus saving millions of lives all over the world. However,
other important recommendations of the 1937 Court of Inquiry are still
needed in most 21st century schools -- technically trained
administrators for modern school systems, regular inspections and
education about hazards, and a comprehensive safety code.
Lessons of the 1937 Texas School Explosion
is dedicated to making March 18 a day to honor the leaders who teach
safely and teach safety and to inspire all schools to prioritize the
values and technical skills necessary for living safely with 21st
century chemicals and technology.
For more information contact: Ellie Goldberg, ellie.goldberg@healthy-kids.info
