June 7, 2024

PRINCETON, NJ – Atlantic City High School took first place in the New Jersey Student Climate Challenge on Thursday, June 6, 2024. The program encourages students to act on the climate crisis. The students received their award at the Governor's Mansion.

The Green Thumbs team was among four finalists in the high school division that submitted short digital story videos showcasing their projects to address a cause or impact of climate change in their school or community. The projects ranged from renovating outdoor gardens to reducing greenhouse gases through clothes recycling. 

The Green Thumbs team renovated a neglected greenhouse on the school’s second floor, which had been dormant since 2019. They turned it into a space to grow local produce. This highlighted opportunities to source food locally out-of-season and reduce Green House Gas emissions associated with the many miles foods travel before reaching the consumer.

The high school greenhouse had been dormant since 2019.

The team planted Romaine lettuce, peppers, basil and other herbs in hydroponics towers to grow food without direct sunlight. “I’m extremely proud of these young people,” said Donald Harris, Director of Secondary Education. “They represent Atlantic City High School to the fullest. It just goes to show that Atlantic City High School is a very good school, one of the best in South Jersey.”

The hydroponics towers, built by senior Aaron Simpson, allowed the students to grow plants without direct sunlight. Source: Atlantic City Public Schools

Zeeshan Bakhtiar, who is a junior, shot and edited the video, which serves as a mini-documentary of the restoration process. “I said we may not win, but I still put in the hard work,” Bakhtiar said. When he found out that Atlantic City was in the finals, he said he knew they had an opportunity to bring home the victory.

Zeeshan Bakhtiar shot and edited the winning video. Source: Atlantic City Public Schools

Aaron Simpson, a senior who plans to major in Environmental Science at Stockton University, built the hydroponics towers. Simpson said, “getting to discover a new part of the building and seeing the plants grow was the most interesting part of the project.”

“We had to grow everything in the greenhouse,” said Hannah Frebowitz, who is also a senior. “But first we had to get the greenhouse back to functionality.” The winners were announced at a 5:00 p.m. ceremony in Princeton at the Governor’s Mansion. Gov. Phil Murphy did not attend. First Lady Tammy Snyder Murphy, however, was on hand for the occasion. 

Founded in 1982, the Drumthwacket Foundation is a 501c.3. non-profit organization that functions in a non-partisan fashion.  The Foundation’s mission is to increase a sense of pride in New Jersey by preserving the Drumthwacket property, which serves as the Governor’s Mansion, broadening access, furthering awareness and support of the Foundation and its activities. It also focuses on expanding civic understanding among New Jersey residents.

"Congratulations on the Green Thumbs Team award," said Drumthwacket Foundation Executive Director Robyn Brenner. "Judges for the Climate Change Challenge Contest scored submissions using a rubric, with points given for Storytelling, Core Science Ideas, Crosscutting Concepts, Team Reflection, etc. The submission forms completed by teachers/group advisors were also carefully weighed."

The foundation has partnered with Atlantic City Electric, Exelon, Sustainable Jersey and others to advance its cause.  Atlantic City High School won a $3,500 grant to advance its climate education initiatives. The second-place winner was Clearview High School.  The third-place winner was Penns Grove High School.

Team advisors Emily Loeb and Renee Carfagno said visiting the Governor’s Mansion for the announcement also seemed a part of the prize. “It was an honor,” Carfagno said. Loeb added, “It was a little unexpected because it was a statewide competition. But they put a lot of hard work in.”

The New Jersey Student Climate Challenge is open to all New Jersey public schools serving students in grades 6 to 12. Teachers can register to participate and integrate the program into their classroom or club activities. The program also offers educational sessions to spotlight local impacts of climate change, strategies to address them and success stories about what students are already accomplishing.

“I’m really impressed with them,” Loeb said of the Atlantic City team. “It gave them first-hand experience with what climate change has done in Atlantic City and in New Jersey.” 

Congratulations to the members of the Green Thumbs:

• Zeeshan Bakhtiar ‘25,
• Aaron Simpson ‘24,
• Saif Naser ‘24,
• Maxwell Duerr ‘24,
• Devin Huynh ‘24,
• Hannah Frebowitz ‘24,
• Nadeefa Nur ‘24, and
• Sophia Mammucari ‘24,
• Emily Loeb was the teacher and team advisor.

(This story was produced by and reprinted with the permission of the Atlantic City Public Schools system, whose website is www.acboe.org)

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