Jun. 30, 2009
Media Contact: Tara Laskowski, tlaskows@gmu.edu 703-993-8815
FAIRFAX, Va.—When rainwater runs off the roof of a school building, how does it end up in the Chesapeake Bay? This is the kind of question middle and high school students from Prince William County will be asking this fall when they become part of a new George Mason University program that integrates the local environment into students' curriculum.
With a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, researchers from Mason's Potomac Environmental Research and Education Center (PEREC) will provide a meaningful watershed education experience for every sixth grader in Prince William County. This three-year grant will provide a field trip to a local park with access to water and aquatic habitats such as Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Prince William Forest Park and Bull Run Mountain. The program will be integrated indefinitely into the county's curriculum for realizing Virginia Standards of Learning objectives at middle and high school levels.
“As young people explore the watershed beyond their classrooms and practice how to care for its natural wonders, their science education becomes more personally relevant and their interest in becoming environmental stewards grows,” said Dann Sklarew, PEREC associate director and project director for the watershed program. “These students will be building the knowledge, skills and attitudes of environmentally conscious citizens and protecting their watershed from local county streams all the way to the Chesapeake Bay.”
Later this summer, Cynthia Smith, research professor of Environmental Science and Policy at Mason will work with Joy Greene of Prince William County Public Schools to begin a series of three-day teacher training workshops for at least 50 teachers of sixth grade, high school earth science, AP environmental science and IB environmental systems. The teacher training program will include building lesson plans, examining computer-based activities and training in field activities such as field samples, exploration and analysis.
Students will also connect to their local watershed by mapping its characteristics, measuring rainfall and runoff, and calculating economic costs. They will develop a community-based project such as creating rain gardens or cleaning up trash, estimate the environmental impact of their project, and post results to a Web site.
Sklarew and Chris Jones, director of PEREC and senior advisor on the grant, estimate that more than 18,000 Prince William County middle and high school students will take part in this project over the three-year period. At least a dozen Mason students will serve as their outdoor educators. ESP graduate student Robert Johnson will also be leading the effort to track the impact of this training on students’ environmental stewardship.
“Given the remarkable growth and diversity at both Prince William County Schools and George Mason University, we’re confident the exchange between these students while in natural settings will help both their own education and their care for the Bay,” says Sklarew.
This Mason-Prince William County partnership is being supported by NOAA’s Chesapeake Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) program.
About George Mason University
Named the #1 national university to watch by U.S. News & World Report, George Mason University is an innovative, entrepreneurial institution with global distinction in a range of academic fields. Located in the heart of Northern Virginia’s technology corridor near Washington, D.C., Mason prepares its students to succeed in the work force and meet the needs of the region and the world. With strong undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering and information technology, dance, organizational psychology and health care, Mason students are routinely recognized with national and international scholarships. Mason professors conduct groundbreaking research in areas such as cancer, climate change, information technology and the biosciences, and Mason’s Center for the Arts brings world-renowned artists, musicians and actors to its stage.
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