As with most programs, the first time through was rough, and the process was too cumbersome to sustain itself. Olson went back to the drawing board, redesigned the recycling plan in conjunction with his market in Bend, and streamlined it into a dynamic program that can include other government agencies, as well as Lakeview schools and the county courthouse and complex. Since the program began running in November 1994, seven tons of paper has made the trip from Lakeview to Bend. Through working with the school's food service provider, the school cafeteria now features metal utensils and plastic trays, instead of plastic utensils and paper plates. Oregon City High School, Oregon City , has taken the charge to reduce school expenditures to heart as part of an integrated two-week unit on recycling in its Science in Society classes.
Students actually use what they learn to save money for the school and the district.
Each year for the past three years students collected and sorted approximately 6.5 tons of copy and computer paper, and this year they added 2 tons of newspaper to the total. Revenues from the sale of recovered paper go back into the school for needed materials and to a school beautification program to pay for flowers and shrubs. Reuse is a vital part of the school's equation for success. Science teachers say they haven't purchased a file folder or paper clip in three years. Even the newspapers from the social studies and special education classes are reused by the science classes to glean science-related news.