Students, teachers, and families cleaned school grounds and adjacent park areas on Saturday, May 6 making the school a more appealing place while students got the chance to earn student service learning hours.

Science teacher Karen Doerrler helped to organize the spring cleanup. She previously started the program six years ago at Neelsville Middle School where she previously taught. Many students would like to see the Spring clean-up become a yearly event and recommend other students to participate next year.

“The building services here does a great job of maintaining the grounds, so I looked for an additional project,” Doerrler said. Doerrler planned the spring clean up day around Earth Day which is April 22.

The stadium, forest areas, and the surrounding of the entire school got cleaned up by 15 students, four staff members, and two adult volunteers. They filled ten bags of glass, plastic bottles, milk containers, chip bags and more. As well as 13 bags of invasive garlic mustard from the park.

“It was fun and nice weather outside and we got to do it with a bunch of my friends,” Freshman Julien Rizarri said. “ I like helping out the environment and making the school a better place and cleaner.”

The purpose for the event was to help stop the pollution which ends up in the Chesapeake Bay and harms animals. The other purpose was to pull out invasive species plants. Doerrler partner up with the “Weed Warrior” program which is dedicated to removing invasive species from parks.

Many positive feedback given about the event and from the students. “Watkins Mill students were the greatest, they were the best workers of all of the student groups I have ever worked with on invasive plant removal projects. They did an awesome job,” Weed Warrior supervisor Ann DeNovo said.

The goal for next year is to get more students to come out and make it a bigger event. As well as adding a beautification element where students can plant flowers and weed the school flowerbeds.“It is important to regularly keep the school clean and I think people can learn from this [experience],” senior Ansumane Diane said.