“This is just what will help our school provide authentic learning to our students.”
-Karen Rose, Dighton Rehoboth Regional High School
In September, we announced that the US Environmental Protection Agency awarded EcoRise environmental education grant funding to pilot our curriculum and implement programming in new regions. Since then we’ve worked to direct these resources and our staff’s energies towards building new partnerships with schools in Boston and D.C. As a result of these efforts, EcoRise trained teachers across 13 campuses in the Northeast USA this past fall, who collectively will reach an estimated 2,900 students this year alone!
Over a two year period, EcoRise seeks to advance and accelerate the environmental education movement in Boston and D.C. through the development and implementation of our new bilingual Sustainable Intelligence curriculum. Additionally, EcoRise provides teachers with ongoing professional development, resources, and a collaboration platform to support them in cultivating student environmental literacy and leadership on campus.
In support of this ambitious project, the EcoRise team conducted several rounds of professional development for K-12 teachers at our partner campuses, the majority of which are urban schools.
Program Director Jonathan Stott writes, “We’re thrilled to be working with an amazing group of educators in Boston and Washington thanks to the support of the EPA. Our teachers in the Northeast brought phenomenal energy to our fall professional development workshops and I can’t wait to see the student outcomes on campus over the next two years!”
Teachers participating in the program praised the organization’s emphasis on providing rich, project-based lessons with carefully paired professional development. Jaqueline Marshall at Tubman Elementary in Washington stated, “This was truly the best workshop I have ever attended in my 18 years of teaching. I can’t wait to use this in my classroom!
Nicole Ruttan of Mario Umana Academy in Boston wrote, “The EcoRise facilitators were highly effective in distributing the information we needed. They responded to individual questions and comments, and also kept things moving, which is a very difficult line to walk. I felt respected and valued as an educator throughout the day.”
We want to thank our passionate and committed partner teachers at the following institutions for participating in this project: CW Harris Elementary, Discovery Elementary, Harriet Tubman Elementary, Mundo Verde Bilingual Charter Public School, Phelps Architecture, Construction, and Engineering Academy, The Lab School of Washington, Boston Green Academy, Boston Latin School, Chelmsford High School, Codman Academy Charter Public School, Mario Umana Academy, North Dighton Regional High School, & The Greene School.
Stay tuned. We can’t wait to share what’s in store for 2016!
