Chicago Students Win National Recognition for Environmental Action

CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - April 14, 2008) - A team of six students from Madero Middle School in Chicago will be celebrating this Earth Day. Not only have they done their part to protect the planet, they've also emerged as one of only 14 first place teams throughout the country who have each won $50,000 in the Lexus Environmental Challenge, a national competition designed by Lexus and Scholastic to educate and empower teens to think big about possible solutions that could make a significant positive impact on the environment.

Madero Middle School will receive a grant for $10,000, the teacher advisor will get a $5,000 grant, and the students will share $35,000 in scholarships. Throughout the seven-month-long environmental education program and contest, more than $1 million in grants and scholarships have been awarded

"When we introduced this challenge, we really had no idea what kind of programs the students would dream up," said Mark Templin, Lexus group vice president and general manager. "Well, now we know they're not afraid to dream big, and act on those dreams. We were amazed at all the teams' innovative ideas, their ingenuity and their pure passion for the topics they chose to address. It's exciting to see these young people discover their voices and learn they have the power to make a difference."

Madero Middle School's team "Earth Warriors" focused their Final Challenge efforts on the plight of global warming. Their goals were to raise the awareness about global warming and raise money to donate to the Rainforest Action Network. To accomplish this the team organized a march in downtown Chicago and they joined international youth forums to share environmental information, videos, pictures and motivating messages about global warming in both English and Spanish. Additionally, they created a MySpace profile for their team, a Web site and contacted media to spread the word about their efforts.

According to the team's teacher advisor Camila Sanchez, "This endeavor has been such a rewarding experience for me and my students. I have seen these students grow and become true advocates for the environment. They have embraced and internalized the purpose, and I believe will continue hereafter to care for their mother - Mother Earth."

"I am proud of Ms. Sanchez and the students for undertaking this responsibility and doing it successfully," said Jose Luis Illanes, Madero Middle School principal. "I hope that it will work as an example for more youth to be more conscious of preserving the environment and making our Earth a better place."

The final winners were selected from 55 teams that qualified for this Final Challenge by winning in one or more of the four previous Challenges that were held from September to February. These initial Challenges, addressing land, air, water and climate, asked teams to take a stand for the environment in their local community and winning teams in these categories each won $3,000. The Final Challenge required teams to reach beyond the local community and inspire environmental action around the world through innovative ideas that were communicated to a wide audience.

The Lexus Environmental Challenge will enter its second year in fall 2008. Teachers and students are encouraged to visit www.scholastic.com/lexus to view all the winning entries and to learn how they can take part in next year's program.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Sandra Levy (562) 391-1516