NINE SCHOOLS AWARDED PRIZES AS WINNERS OF NATIONWIDE 'EARTH TEACHER' CONTEST

          NINE SCHOOLS AWARDED PRIZES AS WINNERS OF NATIONWIDE
                        'EARTH TEACHER' CONTEST
    ADA, Mich., Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Teachers at nine high schools have been chosen as winners in the first nationwide "Earth Teacher" environmental contest sponsored by Amway Corp. and Time magazine.
    A prize of educational materials for the teacher's class or school valued up to $10,000 was awarded to each of the nine winners.  The winners were selected from over 300 eligible entries in the contest for teachers of grades nine through 12 in all academic disciplines.
    Each of the winning teachers will receive a $500 gift and be featured in an Amway Corp. advertisement in Time.
    The Alliance for Environmental Education selected the winners of the Earth Teacher awards.  Aside from the prizes awarded, each winner will be invited as guests of Amway Corp. and Time to attend the United Nations Environment Programme's Global Youth Forum in June 1993 in New York City.
    The winning teachers and their respective schools are the following:
    Yvonne Willis Ash, Castlemont High School, Oakland, Calif.; William Beckman, East Peoria Community High School, East Peoria, Ill.; Robert Brown, The Wheeler School, Providence, R.I.; Sister Ellen Callaghan, Mt. Carmel High School, Baltimore; Sherri Houser, Grapevine High School, Grapevine, Texas; Richard McNeill, Countryside High School, Clearwater, Fla.; William Mittlefehldt, Anoka High School, Anoka, Minn.; Jane Person, East Stroudsburg Senior High School, East Stroudsburg, Pa.; and Hans Smith, Crater High School, Central Point, Ore.
    Yvonne Willis Ash was sponsored by the U.S.D.A. Forest Service to implement environmental awareness programs throughout four Oakland area schools.  As a result, the Castlemont Commencement 2000 was formed, creating student jobs and internships.
    The William Beckman entry was a development of a hands-on science curriculum involving river studies, energy conservation, and radioactive waste management for his science class at East Peoria Community High School.
    Robert Brown developed a river-study curriculum at The Wheeler School in Providence and is the director of the Whole Rivers Science Program, which has led to various conservation programs which include building fish ladders and a river park.
    Sister Ellen Callaghan involved Mt. Carmel High School in Baltimore in the health of the nearby Chesapeake Bay by designing a semester course for her students on the ecology of the Bay.  Her students started their own club called "Society for a Cleaner Bay."
    Sherri Houser attained four acres of land near Grapevine High School in Grapevine and opened the GHS Ecology Center.  She and her students have restored this former waste dump and eyesore into an area in which to study environmental awareness.
    Richard McNeill secured grant funds and organized his Countryside High School students to form SAVE Florida, Students to Students.  This group produced material that was forwarded to 120 student papers in Florida on a variety of topics.
    William Mittlefehldt has headed up a variety of environmental projects, including curriculum units dealing with energy and the environment.  His unit, titled "Energy: How Wealth is Created," was determined best in the nation by the Joint Councils for Economic Education.
    Jane Person created a full-year environmental science course for East Stroudsburg High School students, which includes a student textbook, study guide, investigation manual, a teacher's resource manual, and a bank of suggested items.
    Hans Smith has established the Rogue Ecosystems Program, a one- period science elective at Crater High School in Central Point.  The course has led to a school land laboratory/classroom/fish hatchery now under development.
    The contest was announced in June 1992 in a four-page Amway advertisement in Time as part of Amway's advertising campaign recognizing environmental efforts by teachers, students, and other individuals.  The campaign is part of Amway's overall program of promoting environmental awareness and education through several environmental sponsorships.  Amway Corp. is the 1989 recipient of the United Nations Environment Programme Award of Achievement.
    Amway Corp., based in Ada, is one of the world's largest direct selling companies.  Two million independent distributors in more than 50 countries and territories market over 400 Amway products, another 5,000 brand-name products through Amway's PERSONAL SHOPPERS(R) Catalog, plus a variety of services and educational products.
    -0-                         9/21/92
    /CONTACT:  Ron Braselton of Amway, 616-676-5178; or Robert Pondiscio of Time, 212-522-5196/ CO:  Amway Corporation; Time ST:  Michigan, New York IN: SU:

ML -- DEFNS1 -- 1440 09/21/92 07:35 EDT