Woodbridge's JFK High School Gets $10K Environmental Grant

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — JFK High School in Woodbridge just received a $10,000 grant from Sustainable Jersey for Schools.

JFK will use the grant to install an outdoor water bottle refilling station. The high school will work with its Eco-Friendly Club and the town of Woodbridge to build the water bottle refill station.

The JFK high school students will also do waste audits to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The goal is to decrease the school’s dependency on single-use plastic water bottles.

JFK was one of 26 schools across the state to receive the grant. Schools had to apply for the grants.

John F. Kennedy Memorial High School was ranked the best in the Woodbridge school district in the most recent 2022 U.S. News & World Report rankings.

The Sustainable Jersey for Schools grants are funded by the state teachers' union, the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA).

All the grants had to be used for environmental-related projects, such as building aquaponics systems, outdoor classrooms and school waste-reduction programs. Other schools built pollinator and edible gardens, water-bottle refilling stations, or did tree planting, food waste and composting initiatives.

Keyport High School similarly received a $10,000 grant. They will use it build an outdoor learning center that will include a vegetable garden, classroom and greenhouse, in a unique partnership with the Keyport Garden Club.

One of the goals is to create a "farm to table" program with local Keyport restaurants, said Keyport High School.

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