CLimate Stories
Washington County Public Schools
in 2020, Washington County Public Schools (WCPS) made a comprehensive commitment to environmental literacy. WCPS is working to identify environmental education standards in the curriculum at every grade. Additionally, they have focused MWEEs in each grade band. They are developing a partnership with Blue Swallow Farm Foundation to support professional development for advanced data analysis techniques. They will also develop MWEE evaluation criteria, initially in grades two and six.
VFF primarily supports the extensive professional development for teachers in grades two, four, six, seven and eight, as well as high school biology. We also provide funding for teacher substitutes and student transportation to support field work.
WCPS is building internal leadership with the MWEE Mentors and MWEE Linkers programming. The MWEE Mentors program connects experienced teachers with teachers new to outdoor field experiences through grade specific professional development. MWEE Linkers is a virtual support network that connects teachers from each school with an environmental expert from their outdoor school for support and resources throughout the school year. They are also focused on the evaluation of the MWEE curriculum and their outcomes.