A tall order: Fresh drinking water at school

On July 1, 2011, legislation goes into effect requiring public schools in California to provide free, fresh drinking water in cafeterias. In anticipation of this deadline, youth reporters in Merced, the Coachella Valley and the Bay Area have investigated the availability of clean water at their schools and created media to report on water access - and why students do, and don't, choose  water."Tapping the tap," a photo essay by Alyssa Castro, Venice Arts, featuring interviews with students at Golden Valley High School and Merced High School, both in the Merced area."You can lead a kid to water," a photo essay by Sayre Quevedo at Youth Radio, who got the water tested at his school, Ruth Asawa School of the Arts in San Francisco."Access to clean water at schools crucial to students in East Coachella Valley," an op-ed by Maricruz Cabrera, a writer with Coachella Unincorporated, New America Media's youth media outlet serving the East Coachella Valley.