HAMPTON — Superintendent Dr. Lois Costa and Interim Principal Kenneth Hawkins are proud to share that students from Hampton Academy helped to clean up litter at North Beach last month.
On Wednesday, April 20, 32 students attended the clean-up, including students from Experiential Learning Program and The Green Team Environmental Club, accompanied by their instructors.
In a little over two hours, students picked up about 50 pounds of trash, including metal, rope, plastic bottles, plastic straws, single-use plastic bag pieces, foam cups, pieces of carpets, and more.
“It is important to be aware of the plastic that goes into the ocean as it can harm the many species of animals in the water. We all need to pitch in to keep our beaches clean,” said student Stanley Patterson.
The beach clean-up was organized by Special Education Teacher Bonnie Heath, and Paraeducator Chris Grippo, who is the Vice-Chair of the Surfrider Foundation New Hampshire Chapter. The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting and preserving the world’s oceans and beaches.
“One day, Chris and I were talking about the Surfrider Foundation and thought, what a great way to teach students that it is everyone’s responsibility to keep the oceans and beaches clean, and show them that what they do on land has a great effect on our waterways,” Heath said.
Added Grippo: “This clean-up could not have been more of a success, and that is thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of our students and staff, who proved that a few hours of work can make a big impact.”
This is the second time students helped to clean North Beach. The first time was in October 2021.
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