Welcome to Johansen's Sustainability Hub!

We are dedicated to fostering environmental awareness and responsibility among our students. Through engaging activities and initiatives, we strive to empower young learners to become stewards of the planet, making positive contributions to their community and beyond!

Outdoor air quality at Johansen High School!

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Upcoming Events

Campus Projects!

Campus Recycling - Look for the BLUE bins! We accept plastic bottles, cans, glass, and paper.

Eco-Friendly School Supplies List - JOHO 4 Change club members are compiling a list, Check it out!

Eco-Friendly Supplies
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Joho 4 Change🌍🌎🌏

Joho 4 Change has an extensive list of projects and activities students have spearheaded and developed over the school year. We have expanded classroom recycling and started a paper recycling campus program. Some of our club members researched and compiled a resource list of eco-friendly school supplies. Since February 2024, we partnered with Operation 9-2-99 for a monthly Tuolumne River Cleanup. We are hoping to begin a composting project soon. Check out our Monthly Newsletters below!

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Newsletters

Teacher Coordinator

In March 2023, the Board approved "Sustainability Teacher Champions" funding at all 34 school sites to establish and lead environmental initiatives. At Johansen High School, History and Social Sciences teacher Seth Simas took on the challenge in addition to his other campus responsibilities. Sustainability Leads will form environmental clubs and guide students through projects focusing on: energy conservation, waste reduction, and air monitoring.

Contact: Seth Simas

Teacher Resources

💡Energy Conservation

A full-time Energy Education Specialist contracted through Cenergistic monitors Johansen's utility bills and conducts in-person audits to verify HVAC run times and proper lighting usage. The specialist also helps optimize systems to ensure they run efficiently.

Cenergistic provides ongoing training and support, including student engagement opportunities such as "Energy Audits" and "Utility Bill Review." Visit the District Energy Conservation page to learn more!

If you would like more information about this program, contact the Director of Sustainability, Gilbert Blue Feather Rosas, at Rosas.G@mcs4kids.com.

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Download PDF

🗑Waste Program!

Shortcut to our District Waste tab

Air Quality and Health

UC Merced and CCAC Study📚Purple Air Monitor Program

An air quality monitoring project partnership is underway with UC Merced professor Dr. Asa Bradman and the Central California Asthma Collaborative (CCAC)! MCS received 35 Purple Air Monitors from UC Merced in the fall of 2023 and installed a monitor at all 34 school sites, plus the Transportation Yard.  To learn more about the UC Merced air quality research programs, visit: https://healthyair.ucmerced.edu.672elmp01.blackmesh.com/

Through its SJVAir project, CCAC has deployed over 400 air monitors across the San Joaquin Valley. All of our Purple Air Monitors were calibrated by CCAC, and through its network, you can sign up for text alerts or use its mobile app to receive alerts about the air quality around your school! 

What do the Monitors Measure???

The air monitors determine the air quality based on tiny particles called particulate matter (PM) 2.5, which means that it is particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or smaller! Although PM 2.5 is not visible, when there is a lot of it in the air, it becomes a problem because we can inhale them deep into our lungs, which can cause or exacerbate asthma and other health problems in children, the elderly, and those with other respiratory (breathing) and heart conditions. The Central Valley has some of the highest PM 2.5 levels in the United States!

We hope to initiate programs involving environmental clubs and classes in monitoring and tracking trends and patterns.

Through consistent tracking, the air monitors will develop a baseline for emissions and local air quality. Students can use software like Excel to find correlations in air quality due to site location and surroundings, weather, time of year, and even time of day.  Air monitors will gauge the annual difference in air quality levels from the baseline. Those results will be posted on the district’s Sustainability webpage as data is collected.

No Idling Campaign

Idling vehicles create unnecessary, harmful pollution that affect students’ health. The message is simple: While you wait for your child, please turn off your engine. Idling for more than 10 seconds uses more fuel than turning off the engine and restarting it.

Resource: Healthy Air Living Schools Program Additional Materials

San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District: Real-Time Air Advisory Network

RAAN uses actual, real-time air-quality data taken directly from the nearest air monitor to help you evaluate air quality and determine the right time for outdoor activities. It also provides Real-Time Outdoor Activity Risk (ROAR) guidelines based on five different air-quality levels.

Look up current air quality near you!

Outdoor air monitoring at Johansen High School!

Download the SJVAir App!
Sign up for text air quality alerts

*This AQI reading has a longer lag time in reporting since it receives its updates from the Purple Air Readings.

🌞Solar on Campus

🚘Carports

It's hard not to notice the giant solar panels that now provide shade covering and solar production in the parking lot! Johansen's panels will produce 1308.0 kWh and provide 67,186 sq. feet of shaded covering.

Did you know solar panels absorb significantly less energy (1.8 kWh per square meter per day) than asphalt (5.4 kWh per square meter per day)? This change in energy absorption alters the amount of infrared radiation reaching the ground, providing cooler space for students and transportation staff.

To learn more about solar energy at MCS, check out the District Green Infrastructure tab!

CTE Programs

Climate Action Pathways (CAPS)

Climate Action Pathways for Schools (CAPS) is a California-based non-profit organization providing paid internship programs designed to meet a school district’s climate action goals. Junior and Senior interns' work is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions at a school district level developed in 5 key areas, including clean transportation, building decarbonization, food systems, water conservation, and water management.

A cohort of students from MCS high schools, including Johansen, have the unique opportunity to be part of a process of creating change that can be measured and seen within their school and community.

Student Energy Audits!

After analyzing energy data and understanding site plans, our Climate Action Pathways high school interns conducted energy audits of some district campuses. They prepared questions and interviewed head custodians, our Cenergistic Energy Specialist, and other applicable staff.

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Climate action Pathways high school interns partake in an after school energy audit at Fairview Elementary

Future Renewable Energy Pathways

The district's investment in solar carports and an electric school bus fleet, as well as other sustainability initiatives, has sparked interest in developing technical education programs for high school students to pursue renewable energy curriculum in Career Technical Education (CTE) classes.

District-Wide Sustainability

Main District Sustainability Page