Dundee-Crown teacher gets green for being green

Over the past three decades, Gary Swick and his trademark bushy mustache have become a familiar sight in Dundee Township.

Swick, an environmental science teacher at Dundee-Crown High School, has spearheaded some of the area's best-known green initiatives during his 32 years at the high school.

In recognition of his efforts to educate the community about the environment, Swick has been awarded the Richard C. Bartlett Environmental Education Award. The annual award, given by the National Environmental Education Foundation, recognizes teachers who have been leaders in environmental education.

The award's namesake is a conservationist who is the former the chairman of the foundation. Bartlett was unable to attend the foundation's annual conference in October but praised Swick's efforts in his prepared remarks.

"(Swick's) field initiatives often involve younger students and at-risk students but always involve public education and environmental action experiences," Bartlett wrote.

"Without Gary, we would have far fewer committed conservationists who understand and who help us preserve (Earth's capacity for self-renewal)," wrote Bartlett.

Swick said Friday he would have been unable to achieve what he has "without a lot of support."

"I'm really humbled and appreciative to be honored with a recognition of this magnitude," Swick said. "I'm just one of many that are working hard to connect kids to the environment."

Swick plans to retire at the end of the 2009-10 school year. His legacy at the high school includes the environmental science program, former students who plan to pursue environmental education and several initiatives that will outlive his tenure in the district:

• The "Save the Silo" project, in which students restored the historic silo in the Raceway Woods Forest Preserve.

• "Monitor with your Mother," an annual Mother's Day event in which families monitor water quality in the Fox River.

• "Perry in the Prairie," in which students from Dundee-Crown and Perry Elementary School learn about the prairie ecosystem.

• The "Cool Bus," a school bus that runs on biofuel, an green alternative to diesel fuel.

• "Teen Teaching," in which high school students develop an environmental science curriculum for other students.

Swick will receive $5,000 to further his work in environmental education.