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2005 Headquarters Grants
Environmental Education Grants Awarded by EPA Headquarters in 2005Arizona
Pima Vocational High School - $85,163
Gloria Proo, 97 East Congress Street, Tucson, AZ 85701
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The Green Careers Program
Through the Green Careers Program, at-risk young people learn about environmental careers and the value of environmental stewardship. This program is a new environmental education and training initiative at Pima Vocational High School in Arizona and is designed to help unemployed, out-of-school young people obtain their high school diplomas and sustainable jobs. Building on existing curricula, the program provides its high school-age participants with a broad understanding of environmental issues and principles through the new Conservation Leadership course, which is an introductory environmental science course, as well as field investigation activities. The participants are also provided with job counseling, on-the-job training, mentoring, and on-site technical training. Following their completion of the course, the participants are provided with job-shadowing opportunities and paid internships with environmental professionals at the key partner organizations. The young people, who live in a low-income, minority community, gain marketable skills, job training, and practical experience while being introduced to career opportunities in the environmental science and technology fields. The key project partners are the Tucson Audubon Society; Pima County One-Stop Employment Center; Pima County Department of Natural Resources, Parks, and Recreation; and City of Tucson Water Department.
California
California Integrated Waste Management Board - $91,276
Joanne Vorhies, 1001 I Street, P.O. Box 4025, Sacramento, CA 95812-4025
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Education and the Environment Initiative Implementation Project
In an effort to improve implementation of the Education and the Environment Initiative (EEI), the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) provides environmental nongovernment organizations (NGO) in the state with professional development opportunities and technical assistance. Established by a state law in 2003, the EEI requires CIWMB, the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA), and the California State Department of Education to develop principles and approaches for incorporating environmental education into elementary and secondary school curriculums. The EEI also requires the agencies to create a model environmental education curriculum based on California's academic content standards. As part of the EEI implementation project, representatives of environmental NGOs attend professional development workshops conducted in six regions across the state followed by a series of technical assistance workshops. These workshops are intended to help the NGO community revise existing environmental education materials in order to better align them with California's model curriculum. The workshops also provide increased opportunities for the NGOs to collaborate with schools on environmental education reform. As a result, environmental concepts are being further integrated into the education of California's elementary and secondary school students. Each environmental NGO works with California teachers to help them integrate the revised materials into their curriculums, a process that also builds the capacity of the NGOs. As another element of the project, CIWMB is creating a Web-based environmental education provider database that gives teachers and organizations the ability to communicate and exchange expertise. Key CIWMB partners in the project include Cal/EPA, the California Resources Agency, the California State Department of Education, the Office of the Secretary for Education, and the State Board of Education. The project is also supported by a large number of associated partners.
Colorado
Denver Zoological Foundation, Inc. - $62,545
Sharon Schonhaut, 2300 Steele Street, Denver, CO 80205
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Community Leadership Project
Under this grant, the Community Leadership Project (CLP) provides formal and non-formal educators in the Denver area with the skills to utilize service-learning as a teaching and learning tool in their classrooms and programs. Service-learning combines community service with academic study. Pre-kindergarten through eighth grade educators (formal and nonformal), who teach in highly diverse neighborhoods, participate in an 8-hour training course at the Denver Zoo to learn how to incorporate the CLP service-learning model. The participants are provided revised training manuals that explain the service-learning model and topic-specific loan boxes. Participants gain an enhanced understanding of local environmental issues and learn how to implement activities identified in the loan boxes, which include an educator project manual, community involvement suggestions for environmental service projects, and resource opportunities including volunteer assistance and additional Web sites and guidance. During the academic year, CLP staff provides 40 in-class lessons that focus on specific loan box topics, such as building of bird houses, habitat gardens, and recycling. Key partners include the Adams County Public Works Department, the Adams County School District 14 Afterschool Program, Front Range Earth Force, the Audubon Society, the National Wildlife Federation, Mile High Girl Scout Council, and the Colorado Division of Wildlife.
Georgia
Georgia Department of Natural Resources - $55,000
Kimberlee Bailey, 4244 International Parkway, Suite 104, Atlanta, GA 30354
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Building Capacity for Environmental Education in the Southeastern States
Through this project, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GDNR) is creating a Web-based environmental education clearinghouse for each of seven states and is developing an integrated environmental education Web site for the southeastern United States. The project builds on an effort initiated in 2000 to develop a Web site intended to disseminate information about environmental education activities, opportunities, and resources in Georgia. Using the Web site developed for Georgia as a model, GDNR is developing state-specific environmental education Web sites for Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The Web sites provide environmental education lesson plans and curriculum guides; information about grants, awards, outreach programs, field studies, and conferences; and news about professional learning courses for formal and nonformal educators. Each site also contains a directory that provides educators with access to a searchable database of environmental education organizations, schools, and resources. The sharing of quality resources on the sites and the exchange of information among the sites' users increase educators' ability to provide effective environmental education programs and reduce duplication of effort across states. GDNR's Web site development effort could be replicated in other regions. Key GDNR partners in the project are the Environmental Education Alliance of Georgia, the Georgia Department of Education, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, and the Georgia Parent Teacher Association.
Nebraska
The Groundwater Foundation - $62,318
Cindy Kreifels, P.O. Box 22558, Lincoln, NE 68542-2558
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Awesome Aquifers for the Science Olympiad
The goal of this project is to encourage and challenge middle school students to learn about the nature and value of aquifers and groundwater. In 2003, The Groundwater Foundation (TGF) introduced Awesome Aquifers into the Science Olympiad as a pilot competition. The Science Olympiad is a program for middle and high school students that consists of science-oriented tournaments held at the local, state, and national levels. The project builds on the success of the Awesome Aquifers pilot effort by expanding the competition to the national level to provide hands-on, experience-based groundwater education to a larger audience. During their preparation for the Awesome Aquifers competition, middle school students conduct groundwater research, design and build model aquifers, and identify possible groundwater remediation techniques. The students then present their findings at local, state, and national Science Olympiad tournaments. While the students conduct research, they learn about the importance of groundwater systems and are exposed to career opportunities in the environmental science field. To promote Awesome Aquifers and support its long-term sustainability, TGF produces Awesome Aquifers kits for students who are interested in competing. These "starter kits" include a demonstration video, written instructions, basic groundwater information, and materials for constructing model aquifers. Key TGF partners in the project include the U.S. Geological Survey, individual Science Olympiad organizations, the American Water Works Association, the Water Systems Council, and the Groundwater Resources Association of California.
New York
Wildlife Conservation Society - $90,771
Lee Livney, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460
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Project POWER (Protecting Our Wetlands with Educators and Regulators)
Building on a successful program developed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the New York Aquarium in cooperation with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), Project Protecting Our Wetlands with Educators and Regulators (POWER) expands the delivery of courses focusing on conservation regulations and wetland ecology. The 1-day Tidal Wetland course is targeted at violators of New York State's tidal wetland laws. The goal of the course is to foster an understanding of the importance of wetlands and the laws that protect them as well as to prevent repeat violations. Penalties for participating violators from the New York City area are reduced upon their completion of the Tidal Wetland course. Another goal of the project is to assist the participating state regulatory agencies and environmental education centers such as zoos, nature preserves, and aquariums in replicating the training for their organizations. Representatives of participating organizations attend a 2-day Project POWER Leadership Seminar that focuses on workshop development logistics, course content, and teaching strategies. WCS and its partners also provide technical support for the organizations that implement the internal training, including making resources available online. Key WCS partners in Project POWER include the New York Aquarium and NYSDEC.
Ohio
Mill Creek Restoration Project - $89,750
Robin Corathers, 1617 Elmore Court, Cincinnati, OH 45223
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Mill Creek Watershed Environmental Education Programs
One goal of the Mill Creek Restoration Project (MCRP) is to strengthen and enrich learning opportunities for students and members of the local community in the Mill Creek watershed. Mill Creek is a polluted and degraded river that flows through economically depressed inner-city neighborhoods of Cincinnati, Ohio. Members of MCRP, a nonprofit organization, are working together to improve both the environmental conditions and educational opportunities at Laughing Brook, a new environmental education facility located in the Mill Creek watershed. For example, MCRP is installing sculptures covered with moss and wetland plants that help to cleanse storm water runoff, building a boardwalk for observation purposes, and creating a butterfly garden that serves as a habitat for local species. Both students and adult volunteers are engaged in planting native species in the butterfly garden and in monitoring water chemistry within the watershed. In another MCRP educational program, students learn firsthand about habitat restoration and reforestation by planting shrubs and trees on the Queen City Freedom Trees site, a blighted property located in a heavily commercialized area within the Mill Creek watershed. In addition, students in local middle and high schools participate in a special problem-solving project that focuses on reducing the volume of solid waste and construction debris that must be disposed of in landfills. The students conduct research to determine whether potential waste materials could be reused or recycled at the Laughing Brook and Queen City sites and develop reuse and recycling prototypes that could be replicated in the future. In conjunction with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, MCRP also produces educational materials that illustrate the important role of Mill Creek during the time of the Underground Railroad. Key MCRP partners include ArtWorks, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, and Hamilton County Environmental Services.
South Carolina
South Carolina Department of Education - $84,629
Edward Falco, 1429 Senate Street, Suite 1005, Columbia, SC 29201
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South Carolina Environment as an Integrating Context School Network
Through this project, the South Carolina Department of Education (SCDE) is expanding its successful Environment as an Integrating Context (EIC) program to 12 middle schools. Based on the concept of using the local environment as a classroom, EIC improves student achievement, behavior, and attitudes and helps students contribute to their communities. Teachers from 12 South Carolina middle schools participate in a 4-day summer institute that provides the educators with instructional strategies, curriculum content, environmental education techniques, and supporting resources. During the academic year, the teachers develop and implement lesson plans based on the techniques learned at the institute. The teachers then engage their students in environmental investigation projects involving field studies and research. The students at each school collect and analyze field data and interview local residents to supplement their research. Based on their investigation, the students then choose a service learning project that benefits their community. After completing this project, the students present their findings to members of their community. Key SCDE partners in the EIC program include Clemson University Landscapes for Learning; SC Maps and Aerial Photographic Systems/SC Life; the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control; the South Carolina Wildlife Federation; the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League; the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources; the SouthEast Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence; South Carolina Parks, Recreation, and Tourism; the South Carolina Forestry Commission; the Lexington, Beaufort, and Richland County Soil and Water; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; the Environmental Education Association of South Carolina; the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service; and the Society of American Foresters.
Texas
A Nurtured World, Inc. - $69,860
Susan Roothaan, 6404 Wilbur Drive, Austin, TX 78757
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Consumer Environmental Education for Secondary School Students
Designed for middle and high school teachers in Texas, this project provides the educators with the skills and techniques they need to teach their students how to make informed decisions about their personal behavior in order to reduce associated impacts on the environment. The teachers participate in pilot workshops to enhance their understanding of consumer conservation and to learn about the Consumer Environmental Education curriculum developed by A Nurtured World, Inc. The curriculum, which is an innovative, inquiry-based course of study that links environmental impacts to issues of concern to individuals, helps teachers engage students by connecting environmental and earth sciences to real-world experiences. An advisory team composed of representatives of the key project partners and several secondary school teachers provides assistance and guidance for the pilot workshop participants. One purpose of the pilot workshops is to obtain feedback from the participants in order to appropriately customize the curriculum for secondary school students. Following the pilot workshops, the teachers participate in two 1-day train-the-trainer workshops at which they receive teacher kits that include lesson plans, homework assignments, and descriptions of field activities. Online resources are also made available to the teachers. The key project partners are the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's Environmental Education Team and the Texas Education Agency.
Wisconsin
University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum - $100,000
Elizabeth McCann, Research and Sponsored Programs, 750 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53706-1490
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Restoration-Education and Science Training for Outreach to Regional Educators
This project extends the University of Wisconsin - Madison Arboretum's nationally recognized Earth Partnership for Schools (EPS) Program model for professional development of teachers to a broader audience. Through this project, EPS is promoting and replicating ecology-based education in other states by establishing EPS Program Facilitating Centers at four nonformal educational sites. Teachers and nonformal educators at the four sites participate in a Restoration-Education and Science Training for Outreach to Regional Educators (RESTORE) Train-the-Trainer Summer Institute to learn how to provide restoration-based education. The RESTORE initiative is an interdisciplinary approach to providing education on biodiversity loss and ecological restoration that involves restoring native ecosystems on school grounds. Teams of instructors create, implement, and evaluate high-quality professional development training programs for each center. These instructors also attend an annual Winter Meeting to discuss successes and lessons learned and to network with their fellow participants; this forum helps to create a national learning community of professionals who are well versed in schoolyard habitat restoration. EPS staff members provide support and resources to the teams of instructors throughout the process. Each center is expected to train approximately 40 to 60 local nonformal educators and teachers of kindergarten through grade 12. Key project partners include Dyck Arboretum of the Plains, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, the Louisiana Sea Grant College Program, the University of Wisconsin - Madison Department of Curriculum and Instruction, and Wisconsin-based EPS Program Facilitating Centers.
