Project Helping Hands:  a program of Keep Odessa Beautiful that is designed specifically for K-6 grade students and is approved by the Ector County Independent School District.  This program is based on 30-45 minute lesson plans for a nine (9) week period.  The curriculum utilized for this program is obtained and approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Waste in Place (Keep America Beautiful).

The name Project Helping Hands  is designed to encourage students that everyone can lend a helping hand to make this world much cleaner and beautiful as revealed by the logo design.

The organization's Education Program Coordinator teaches weekly lesson plans to students regarding: litter prevention & campus cleanups, air & water pollution, water conservation, recycling, household hazardous waste, trees, habitats and the general ecology.

The first lesson plan given to students is a brief "quiz" (in accordance with grade level) to ascertain the student's knowledge regarding certain environment issues.  This same quiz is repeated on the 8th week of Project Helping Hands.  Statistics reveal that students have increased their knowledge by 48%!  A graduation is held on the 9th week and students are recognized with a Project Helping Hands Certificate of Completion and a T-shirt!

Teachers that are interested in this program can contact Keep Odessa Beautiful at 333-1299 or email at kob@apex2000.net