Leader of the Pack
Elizabeth Rivera is an Honors, ninth grade biology teacher at East Chicago Central High School. Mrs. Rivera has been a teacher at EC Central for 10 years now and doesn’t show any signs of stopping! Mrs. Rivera believes deeply in her students and that they can be the best they possibly can. She makes it her duty to make sure her students put forward fervent effort when it comes to their work. She’s the type of person to push you to your highest level of excellence and won’t give up on you.
What’s Going On
Litter left on places, such as beaches, cause a tremendous amount of problems. According to the National Academy of Sciences in the USA, it was estimated that 6.4 million tons of litter enter the world’s oceans because of storms. However, a majority of litter comes from careless beach visitors who leave their litter lying on the sand.
Litter left on beaches affects the environment, economy, and human health and safety. Fishing nets, plastic bags, and tires can sink to the ocean floor and break and smother coral reefs. Something could even float onto shore and injure someone visiting the beach. But, Mrs. Rivera is working hard to decrease risks of these things happening.
Every year, in both the fall and spring, Mrs. Rivera takes groups of volunteer students to the East Chicago Marina beach. They all leave early in the day and spend the entire Saturday ridding the beach of stray trash like empty cans and bottles, diapers, and even cigarette buds.
Mrs. Rivera originally heard about the beach clean-up idea a few years ago from someone at the Alliance for the Great Lakes. Mrs. Rivera latched onto this idea immediately. The first beach clean-up Mrs. Rivera initiated was in 2012 and she’s been passionate about making a difference since then.
When asked about the beach clean-ups, Mrs. Rivera spoke on how the beach lacked garbage cans.
“It is a shame that after 9/11, many garbage cans disappeared from our city streets. This has a lot to do with all the litter we see,” Mrs. Rivera admits. She then goes on to say, “Everyone is paranoid that the trash cans will be used for other things rather than garbage.” It’s a saddening thought knowing something as devastating as 9/11 is causing more problematic issues in numerous communities around the country.
The lacking of garbage cans did nothing more but contribute to the amount of litter on the beach. The lacking of garbage cans caused people to become idle, leading them to believe the only way to discard of their trash was to throw it anywhere. This, however, didn’t alter Mrs. Rivera’s dedication to cleaning the beach.
When asked about the amount of trash Mrs. Rivera and the students picked up, she went to say they collected around 225 pounds! In May, during the spring, she stated they picked up about 375 pounds. Just this fall, the group retrieved about 500 pounds of trash!
Mrs. Rivera loves how she is making a difference and when asked about it, she responded by saying it made her feel good knowing she was helping the community, and also knowing she was helping younger people help the community as well. She also loved how she was giving opportunities to students by allowing them to see and appreciate the changes they were making in their own community.
Student in the Spotlight
Though Mrs. Rivera appreciates all of the students’ hard work, she is especially fond of one student. Tatiana Lopez is a senior at East Chicago Central High School. Mrs. Rivera states that Tatiana has been a participant at the beach clean ups since her freshman year.
“I really admire her because it is hard for her to find a ride,” Mrs. Rivera starts. “She has even taken the city bus to get to the beach and has walked a lot.”
Tatiana’s diligent effort to help the beach doesn’t go unnoticed and is always appreciated.
What’s Coming Up
Along with the beach clean-ups giving students volunteer hours, it also allows students to work toward making a difference in their community! Don’t worry, the students’ hard work isn’t going unnoticed. The students receive awards and certificates for their work and the collected data from the beach clean-ups are inspiring lawmakers in Indiana to invest in finding conclusions to fix the problem at the Marina!
As stated before, the beach clean ups do take place in both the fall and spring time. So, if you’re interested in taking part in the beach clean-up this upcoming May, feel free to contact Mrs. Rivera by email for more information: erivera@ecps.org. Join the cause to help the beaches!