Get ready – the 2026 Schools for Clean Water Contest runs October 7 – October 21!
Help reduce pollution in Downriver waterways and win money for your school!
See list of participating schools below.
Schools For Clean Water Contest
Pledge to Adopt a Storm Drain
Do you have a curbside storm drain in the street near your home? If so, you can help your favorite participating school win a cash prize by participating in the Schools for Clean Water Contest! Simply take the online pledge to adopt a neighborhood storm drain, then assign your pledge to your favorite participating school. The schools with the most pledges can win money. And you can help reduce pollution in our Downriver Waterways and flooding risk in your community. By pledging to adopt, you are committing to keeping an eye on your storm drain, cleaning off debris, and reporting issues to your local municipality.
School Resources
Find tools and information to help your school win the most pledges by visiting the School Resources page. Resources include a digital outreach toolkit with sample language and graphics for emails, newsletters, and social media; flyers for parents; extra credit opportunities; and more!
Submit School Extra Credit
Extra credit must be submitted before 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, October 21, 2026, to be counted. Visit the School Resources page for more information.
2026 Participating Schools
• Anderson Elementary School (Trenton)
• Arno Elementary (Allen Park)
• Chapman Elementary (Rockwood)
• Clarence Randall Elementary (Taylor)
• Flat Rock Community High School (Flat Rock)
• Grosse Ile High School (Grosse Ile Township)
• Hedke Elementary (Trenton)
• Hunter Elementary (Gibraltar)
• Oakley W. Best (Dearborn Heights)
• Parsons Elementary (Gibraltar)
• St. Pius Southgate (Southgate)
• Trillium Academy (Taylor)
• Tyler Elementary School (Belleville)
• Wegienka Elementary School (Woodhaven-Brownstown School District)
• Weiss Elementary School (Gibraltar)
Great Schools
Take the pledge to help local schools win cash for educational supplies and activities. Help kids — maybe even yours — learn good citizenship.
Clean Streams
Clean storm drains mean clean streams. Take the pledge to help keep local waterways clean for everyone to enjoy.
Safe Streets
Clogged storm drains cause flooded streets. Take the pledge to help prevent dangerous flash floods in roadways and neighborhoods.
What is the ADW Schools for Clean Water Contest?
This is a public service campaign to reduce pollution in the “downriver” portion of southern Wayne County, Michigan. Residents pledge to adopt a local storm drain and assign their pledge to a participating school. Schools that collect the most pledges win cash prizes they can use to purchase educational materials or support school projects.
Prizes
Prizes are awarded based on which schools collect the greatest number of pledges.
• First Place: $1,500
• Second Place: $1,250
• Third Place: $1,000
In addition to prizes for the top three, all remaining schools that earn at least 100 pledges will be entered into a drawing for one of five “wild card” prizes of $250 each.
Also, all participating schools can earn 1 credit towards becoming a Wayne County Green School.
Student Pledge Posters
Students have the opportunity to sign and submit a Student Pledge Poster, promising to do their part to keep trash out of local storm drains. In 2025, schools submitted a photo of the signed poster before the contest ended to earn up to 50 extra credit pledges.
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Anderson Elementary
Arno Elementary
Arno Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Dr. Brenda Hauge Early Learning Village
Grosse Ile High School
Hedke Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Oakley W. Best Middle School
Parsons Elementary
St. Pius-Southgate
St. Pius-Southgate
St. Pius-Southgate
St. Pius-Southgate
Wegienka Elementary
Weiss Elementary
Blue Shirt Days
Schools can earn up to 100 extra credit pledges during the contest by organizing a Blue Shirt Day where students and staff wear a blue shirt. In 2025, schools submitted a group photo of students wearing blue shirts before the contest ended to earn credit.
Anderson Elementary
Arno Elementary
Arno Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Chapman Elementary
Dr. Brenda Haugue Early Learning Village
Flat Rock Community High School
Grosse Ile Township High
Hedke Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Hunter Elementary
Oakley W. Best Middle School
Parsons Elementary
Parsons Elementary
St. Pius-Southgate
Wegienka Elementary
Wegienka Elementary
Weiss Elementary
2025 Schools for Clean Water Contest Results
Thank you so much to everyone who pledged in the 2025 Schools for Clean Water Contest. By checking on your storm drain to make sure it is clean of leaves, trash, and other debris, you helped keep your local waterways clean and your streets free from flooding.
In 2025, 18 schools brought in a total of 1,946 pledges to adopt storm drains.
Top Winners
Our top three schools did an amazing job bringing in pledges to support clean water. Congratulations!
1. First place ($1,500): Arno Elementary School (525 pledges)
2. Second Place ($1,250): Hunter Elementary School (520 pledges)
3. Third Place ($1,000): Hedke Elementary School (444 pledges)
Wild Card Winners
Although they didn’t get enough to place in the top three, the five Wild Card winners all collected more than 100 pledges. These schools were the lucky winners of our random Wild Card drawing for one of five $250 prizes:
• Flat Rock Community High School (201 pledges)
• Wegienka Elementary School (210 pledges)
• Chapman Elementary School (421 pledges)
• Oakley W. Best Middle School (202 pledges)
• Weiss Elementary (339 pledges)
