CLimate Stories
Anacostia Watershed Society
Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) has a long standing commitment to environmental literacy and outdoor education programs. In April 2022, the Board of Education expanded this when they approved a Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP) with eight priority recommendations. The number one priority in the CCAP is to support environmental justice through climate curriculum, training, and partnerships.
The Veverka Family Foundation began supporting the Anacostia Watershed Society in 2018, who partnered with PGCPS to develop the Mussel Powers Program. It has now been implemented in the Biogeochemical Systems classrooms in all 25 high schools and six middle schools. This highly successful program became an anchor for the CCAP.
The Mussel Power program is a multi-part program that includes professional development workshops for teachers, introductory classroom lessons for students, a field study on the Anacostia River, follow-up classroom work, and participation in an authentic mussel restoration project. The project enables teachers and students to engage in authentic restoration projects to help restore and protect the Anacostia River. The teachers continue to broaden the scope of watershed lessons and introduce them to their colleagues.