Tricia Galer
Teacher at Madison Middle School in Rexburg, ID
Students at Madison Middle School planted a learning garden with grant money from IdEEA
In this season of giving, the Idaho Environmental Education Association would love to give a gift to you. Educators, student groups or non traditional educators can apply for grant funding, up to $500, for projects that help youth in Idaho learn more about the environment and their connection with nature.
As an educator wanting to help my students create an outdoor space for our school, I applied for and was awarded a grant in the spring of 2023. Our grant helped my fourth grade class begin to fulfill our dream. Drawing on the model of our local university’s outdoor gardens, we set a goal to create a similar, scaled space at our school. With support from our IdEEA grant, local businesses, Idaho State Extension educators, the Bureau of Land Management, and local conservation groups, we were able to make the first phase of this dream a reality. IdEEA provides a fantastic network of state and community partners eager to help support your project.
Students plant native plants in their learning garden after working with local experts to choose the best plants for their school environment.
We applied for our grant in the winter and spent the next several months learning about native and indigenous plants and their benefits to the environment, including native pollinators like bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies. We worked with a landscape designer and other experts weekly to design a beautiful and sustainable garden space. Students made observations and sought answers to questions on field trips to local hiking trails, native plant nurseries, and Yellowstone National Park. Our grant helped us purchase the gorgeous plants for our garden and funded some of our expeditions.
Receiving our grant really felt like opening a Christmas package. My students and I felt like our investment and project was being celebrated by a larger community and were excited to use our funds to create a gift for future generations of educators and students.
Apply today for a grant from IdEEA that will amplify the important work that you are doing to create experiences that will improve the environment and the lives of students in perpetuity.
Comments