Excitement brews for EcH20 at BHS

Students at Benicia High School are looking to the future, and what they see are growing opportunities for Green Jobs.  Over 200 parents, students and staff members sat down to a free dinner in the school's  Student Center Thursday night. The occasion:  a chance to hear about next year’s launch of the EcH20 Academy.

The Academy, which will be a school within a school at BHS will offer coursework and job skills training for students interested in going into the Green Job industry.  Based on the turnout for this event, the new program appears to be very popular.

“Environmental careers are certainly in the news,” said Academy Lead Polly Farina.  “I don’t know why, but Benicia Highs student body seems to be incredibly passionate about the environment…we have a very active Echo Club on campus.”  Evidence of Farina's statements can be seen in classroom windows on campus that display signs promoting environmentalism.  One sign read, “A Tree Does a (Student) Body Good.”

Farina who teaches Business explained that it was student interest in Green Issues that led to the idea of the ECH20 Academy. “I had a student competition team, primarily business oriented, and they wanted all their businesses to focus on the environment,” she said.  “That’s when we started looking at the job outlook for environmental careers…it became kind of an obvious that this was an area of interest…we have over 100 students who are interested,” Farina said.

Student interest ranges from curious to enthusiastic. Student Claire Diesman, who attended the event said, “it sounds interesting and could open up good opportunities for me in the future.”   Her interest in the Green industry stems from her family.  “My family’s a big ‘save the planet’ kind of family” she said. Claire’s mother and father Nora and John Diesman are both supportive of Claire’s interest. “We have to do something about what we are doing to the planet, we’ve still got time, but we better hurry up” John Diesman said. The Green Industry Claire Diesman is most interested in hydrology.

Freshmen Randa Ahmad and Kaylin White both expressed interest in the job opportunities that could come by graduating from the Academy.  But for their mothers it’s not just the jobs that Academy attendance could lead to, it is what those jobs could accomplish.  Randa’s mother Amal Ahmad said, “I like the fact that this is a hands on program and that it’s good for the environment...the future is the kids and they really need to understand how to take care of the earth.”  Kaylin’s mother Kenyatta White agreed.  “The environment piece itself is giving back so we can have a future," she said.

The Academy plans on accepting 60 studaents, but staff indicated that a second class  may be added if necessary.