As many of you know, Turning Point School was recently recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a California Green Ribbon School (bronze category). In order to receive this prestigious award, schools must: reduce environmental impact and costs, including waste, water, energy use, and alternative transportation; improve the health and wellness of students and staff; and provide effective sustainability education. Our sustainability programs, such as Dirt to Dish, composting, No Waste Lunches, Green Cup Challenge, the Dominican Republic service learning trip, and the Carpool Challenge make Turning Point stand out among our peer schools.

While we have much to celebrate in our efforts to be as sustainable as possible, we can always do better. We want to once again be recognized as a Green Ribbon School—this year earning recognition in the silver or gold category. Our collective efforts in next week’s Carpool Challenge can help us to get there.

But the Carpool Challenge’s benefits extend beyond public recognition for our efforts; we want our children to see that we all do what we can to improve traffic, air quality, community, and neighbor relations. Los Angeles is the fourth most congested metro area in the world, according to Inrix, a Washington-based traffic research firm, with drivers wasting 66 hours in congested traffic over the past 12 months. We hope that the Carpool Challenge will encourage you to find other Turning Point families near you and perhaps create an ongoing ride-sharing relationship, which translates into less driving for you. Our children will see that we are all responsible for the air quality in the Los Angeles area, and that there are small—but meaningful—actions we can do to make a difference. Our neighbors also appreciate our small footprint, and we want to continue to have good relations.

More people are carpooling, biking, and taking public transportation across Los Angeles than ever before. Let’s be part of this energetic and optimistic movement. Here’s how:

• Students are encouraged to carpool, walk, bike, or use public transportation to school next week. Each time they do, they get to fill out a raffle ticket. Please note that “carpooling” is defined as collaborating on transportation with at least one other family.
• At the All School Assembly on October 24, we will randomly pick names from all submitted raffle tickets.
• Winners will earn one of the following on behalf of their entire grade level: an extra Family Night (i.e., no homework); extra 20 minutes of recess; or a waffle party, prepared by Level 8 students and our Community Service Leadership Coordinator, Mr. Kline!

I hope you will encourage your children to participate – not just to be a hero to their classmates, but a hero to the environment. If you’d like to carpool but don’t know where to start, you can easily find a nearby Turning Point family by logging into your Parent Portal, going to the Directory, and selecting Nearby Families.

We all look forward to trying new adventures in carpooling, public transportation, biking, and walking next week!