Local schools, organizations among recipients of DEP environmental grants
California Area Elementary School sixth-graders, from left, Austin Ott, Emma Vash, Ryan Neil, and L.J. Pollock, display the solar-powered scooters they drive between the elementary school and the high school as part of the district's environmental and sustainability initiatives.
Austin Ott, a sixth-grader at California Area Elementary School, rides a solar-powered scooter on the school campus, with L.J. Pollock and Ryan Neil, also sixth-graders, follow close behind.
Students in Washington and Fayette counties will live out the adage, “Think globally, act locally,” next school year with the launch of local environmental education projects.
Last week, the state Department of Environmental Protection announced initiatives by Fayette County’s Mountain Watershed Association, and the California Area School District are among 63 projects awarded funds through the Environmental Education Grants Program.
“We were surprised because we know that this is a very competitive grant opportunity,” said Ashley Funk, executive director for the Mountain Watershed Alliance. “It’s really challenging to get a grant like this, so we were surprised but also very excited that we are going to have the opportunity to work with students (in our watershed area).”
With its $18,600 grant, the Mountain Watershed Association will launch The Water Guardians, an after-school club for fourth- and fifth-graders at Connellsville Area School District’s Springfield Clifford North Pritts and Crawford elementary schools.
Both schools are considered Environmental Justice Areas, said Funk, because more than 20% of the population falls below the federal poverty line.
Under the leadership of Mountain Watershed’s outreach and education coordinator Hannah Spencer, water guardians will explore nature for exposure to their local environment and complete hands-on activities.
“We’ll connect them more with the work that we do to improve water quality in the region,” said Funk.
Guest speakers will provide additional education, and students will come away from the program with a better understanding of environmental issues throughout the region and ways young people can take action.
“In the Laurel Highlands, where both of these schools are located and where we focus a lot of our work, access to environmental resources is really critical. It’s a big economic driver in terms of tourism,” Funk said. “It’s important for youth today to learn more about some of the environmental impacts that happen now and have happened for generations, and how we can take action to remediate those environmental impacts. It’s really important for youth to understand their environment and what goes into making sure that those resources are protected for them, and for people who come visit, and for the different flora and fauna and species that also call this area home.”
California Area School District, too, has big plans for its $20,000 grant. The district will launch the Success Relies on Sustainable Schools program to promote conservation at the start of the 2022-2023 school year.
“We don’t currently have a recycling program in place,” said Dr. Laura Jacob, superintendent of California Area School District. “We really believe that if we’re going to teach children sustainability, if we’re going to focus on that component, we have to practice it at school.”
The program will ease students into recycling and help them form sustainability habits. Jacob said the year begins with a paper recycling initiative. Each month, the district will build on previous months’ education; eventually, students will learn about food waste through composting and other recycling methods.
The district will resurface its playground area with recycled materials, Jacob said.
While educating students on the benefits of recycling and teaching them how to form recycling habits is exciting, there is one aspect of the program Jacob is most excited for.
“The last piece, I think, will be a lot of fun. We have a van or bus go between the two school buildings, a shuttle,” she said. “So we’re going to purchase some solar-powered scooters – think of the Lime (electric scooters) that you see out in the cities. This will be perfect for the kids. The kids can shuttle between the two buildings themselves.”
This year, DEP grant priority was given to projects that address water, climate change or environmental justice and those that expand the public’s understanding of environmental issues throughout the Commonwealth.
Projects that develop skills required to make informed decisions were also prioritized – and projects by both Mountain Watershed and California Area School District aim to teach the next generation to live more sustainably.
“It’s something that you want to do, but it does take investment funds to get a program like that started,” Jacob said. “We just needed a little bit of support financially to get those projects started. I was really thrilled to have that opportunity.”