Keep America Beautiful engaged its National Youth Advisory Council members in a Martin Luther King Day of Service project in Grand Prairie, Texas, prior to its 2018 National Conference, which took place Jan. 17-19 in Dallas.
STAMFORD, Conn. (Jan. 15, 2018) – Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, will engage its National Youth Advisory Council members to participate in a Martin Luther King Day of Service project today in Grand Prairie, Texas. Keep America Beautiful annually selects 11 students nationwide to contribute to and inform the organization on program innovation, while acting as ambassadors and leaders for youth service in their communities. The Youth Advisory Council is gathering in Dallas, Texas, from Jan. 17-19 for Keep America Beautiful’s annual National Conference.
The National Youth Advisory Council will gather with Keep America Beautiful community-based affiliate Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful and the Grand Prairie Independent School District to conduct a “Trashless Tree Trails” project at Daniels Elementary School. “Trashless Tree Trails” is a component of the Keep America Beautiful Schools initiative, in partnership with Texas A&M Forest Service. The initiative involves measuring existing trees (i.e. height, crown spread, and circumference), mapping them, and calculating their annual economic and environmental impact. This project will also include a tree-planting and beautification component.
In addition to the service projects, Keep America Beautiful will also recognize Daniels Elementary School for its certification as a Keep America Beautiful School. The ceremony will take place at 1:00 pm (CST) at the Dalworth Recreation Center in Grand Prairie, Texas. Certified Keep America Beautiful Schools have completed programs addressing litter, solid waste and recycling, and beautification.
The members of the 2017-2018 Keep America Beautiful Youth Advisory Council class come from across the nation and Canada:
- Eleanor Anderson, Macon, Georgia
- Sammi Dorfan, San Diego, California
- Laura Espinoza, Rockville, Maryland
- Bethany Griffin, Chicago, Illinois
- Liam Horne, Arlington, Texas
- Mary Macrae, Lake Jackson, Texas
- Maegan Mikkelson, Cape Coral, Florida
- Brady Millwood, Boaz, Alabama
- Nicholas Ranieri, Palm City, Florida
- Mikayla Ranspot, Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Lauren Sitarek, Winnipeg, Canada
Keep America Beautiful’s National Youth Advisory Council provides a unique opportunity for high school students from diverse backgrounds across the nation to participate in a service-learning and leadership development program. Learn more at https://kab.org/our-programs/education/youth-advisory-council.
About Keep America Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful, the nation’s iconic community improvement nonprofit organization, inspires and educates people to take action every day to improve and beautify their community environment. Celebrating its 65th Anniversary in 2018, Keep America Beautiful strives to End Littering, Improve Recycling and Beautify America’s Communities. We believe everyone has a right to live in a clean, green and beautiful community, and shares a responsibility to contribute to that vision.
Behavior change – steeped in education, research and behavioral science – is the cornerstone of Keep America Beautiful. We empower generations of community and environmental stewards with volunteer programs, hands-on experiences, educational curricula, practical advice and other resources. The organization is driven by the work and passion of more than 600 Keep America Beautiful affiliates, millions of volunteers, and the collaborative support of corporate partners, social and civic service organizations, academia, municipalities, elected officials, and individuals.
About the Grand Prairie Independent School District
Grand Prairie ISD is a 58-square mile district conveniently located between Dallas and Fort Worth in the far western part of Dallas County serving more than 29,000 students. The District borders Irving, Texas, to the north and the Joe Pool lake area to the south. GPISD has more than 40 campuses including 25 schools of choice and over 20 unique programs of choice. The District’s mission is to ensure student success through engaging learning experiences, collaborative leadership, and a focus on maximizing student achievement. To learn more about Grand Prairie ISD, visit www.gpisd.org.
About Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful
Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful is a program within the City of Grand Prairie’s Solid Waste and Recycling Division that focuses on the three main pillars of Keep Texas Beautiful and Keep America Beautiful: litter prevention, recycling, and beautification. KGPB partners with the local school district and local businesses as well as scout troops and other volunteer groups to help make Grand Prairie the cleanest, greenest, most beautiful place to live, work, and play.
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