Year-End Recycling Event Enables Students to Help the Community and the Environment

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(Ashland, Ore.) — Southern Oregon University and Southern Oregon Goodwill® Industries have teamed up for the fifth annual Move Out Donation Drive.
The year-end event enables students clearing out their rooms and apartments in SOU residence halls to dispose of things they no longer need in an environmentally responsible way that also supports job training and employment programs for people with the most need locally.
“It’s a great partnership,” said Roxane Beigel-Coryell, Sustainability & Recycling Coordinator at Southern Oregon University. “We started it to reduce the garbage volume and expenses related to that, but it also introduces our students to the opportunity to donate to an organization that creates jobs and provides affordable goods in the community through reuse.”
In the past, SOU had to order several large garbage bins to handle what students threw away as they moved out of residence halls. Much of what was tossed in the trash was useful — in some cases unused — including clothes, shoes, small appliances, electronics, books, office supplies, linens, furniture, rugs, and more.
Since 2012, SOU students have brought 29,795 pounds of donations to Goodwill bins on campus during the Move Out Donation Drive. Donated items are either sold in Goodwill stores or recycled if not in gently used condition. Revenues from donated items fund employment training and placement programs in Southern Oregon and Northern California.
Find a complete list of on-campus donation locations and items that will be accepted at www.sou.edu/sustainable/moveout.html or learn more at www.sogoodwill.org/moveoutsou/.
For more information contact:
Roxane Beigel-Coryell, M.M.
Sustainability & Recycling Coordinator, Southern Oregon University
541-552-8139
-SOU-
About Southern Oregon Goodwill Industries:
Southern Oregon Goodwill Industries is headquartered in Medford Oregon and is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to the mission: enable employment by providing opportunities for personal and professional growth. The agency is one in a network of over 160 Goodwill agencies in the US and Canada. Revenue generated through the sale and recycling of donated goods is used to fund job training and support programs for the people in Southern Oregon in Douglas, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath, and Lake Counties and Siskiyou County in California. For more information about Southern Oregon Goodwill Industries, go to www.sogoodwill.org.
About Southern Oregon University
Southern Oregon University is a medium-sized campus that provides comprehensive educational opportunities with a strong focus on student success and intellectual creativity. Located in vibrant Ashland, Oregon, SOU remains committed to diversity and inclusion for all students on its environmentally sustainable campus. Connected learning programs taught by a host of exceptional faculty provide quality, innovative experiences for students. Visit sou.edu.