Case Studies

Zane Middle School, Eureka, CA

Zane Middle School serves 700 seventh- and eighth-graders in Eureka, CA, a small city near the California/Oregon border.  A water station was installed in May after a group of students spent two years working on ways to improve drinking water access on campus.  They photographed dirty drinking fountains, surveyed students about their drinking habits, compiled research on water’s health benefits, visited Humboldt State to see hydration stations in use there, and then presented their findings to Zane’s School Site Council.

The Council unanimously supported the students’ idea for a hydration station and was able to fund it with money earmarked for projects related to school safety and climate.  The hydration station is a surface-mounted unit made by Brita and costs $2,050.  A drain kit costs an additional $100, and a filter that will last through 2,400 gallons of water costs $80.  In late May, Eureka City Schools maintenance staff installed the station in the cafeteria, where students can access it before school, during breaks, at lunch, and after school.  Having it in the cafeteria instead of outdoors in the hallways will it protect it from vandalism when school is closed.