This project provides funding to henrico county public schools to implement its project, which will design, demonstrate, and disseminate environmental education practices, methods, and techniques that…

This project provides funding to henrico county public schools to implement its project, which will design, demonstrate, and disseminate environmental education practices, methods, and techniques that will serve to increase environmental literacy and encourage behavior that will benefit the environment in henrico county, virginia. The grantee will do this by delivering environmental education (EE) directly to the hearts of underserved schools and communities. The project will leverage a state-of-the-art electric bus by transforming IT into a roving electric classroom that brings immersive EE experiences to 21 title i elementary schools. Activities:this project will increase public awareness and knowledge about environmental issues in henrico county, virginia, and provide underserved youth in grades 1-12 with the skills necessary to make informed decisions and take responsible actions. The activities to be performed during this project period include lessons and projects focused on climate change, air quality improvement, environmental justice, and indigenous knowledge, as well as age-appropriate lessons and field trips for the participating children.subrecipient:this project will award five subawards in the amount of $5,000 each for a total of $25,000. Each subaward is broken down as shown. The first $5,000 subaward will be for curriculum development for the stations on the bus. The recipient will oversee the creation of a total of 30 activities (5 lessons per grade level k-5) around the five built-in stations on the bus. The second $5,000 subaward will be for resource and asset mapping of the 21 elementary schools. This contract will be completed by the recipient with input from the school and community while focusing on the best practices that will have the greatest impact for that school and community. Through this process, the school and community stewardship projects best practices will be identified. The third $5,000 subaward will be used for a recipient to coordinate the school and community stewardship events. This award will be used for supplies, materials or administrative costs associated with the 21 events. The fourth $5,000 subaward will be used for teacher professional learning led by the recipient. That recipient will lead summer professional learning for the 300 teachers and create asynchronous resources to provide support for teachers before their scheduled week the bus. The fifth $5,000 will be used for communication and press coverage of the project. The recipient will support telling the story of the 'green wheels for bright minds: recipient will include features on how the bus was created using hcpc' ACE centers, how community partners helped establish the bus and what full implementation of the projects looks like through the lifespan of the bus. The total other costs for this project are $25,000 which will come entirely from EPA funds.outcomes:IT is anticipated that this project will result in the following deliverables: enhance EE capacity among teachers significantly by providing educators with hands-on training in EE. This project will equip them with the skills, understanding, and knowledge to integrate environmental topics into their teaching repertoire, thereby amplifying the program's reach and sustainability. Another anticipated deliverable is the electric bus, which will serve as a mobile classroom. This bus will serve as a symbol of environmental stewardship, a tangible representation of the community's commitment to ecological responsibility. The bus will also catalyze community involvement, with over 1,100 community members expected to participate, reinforcing the significance of environmental stewardship in henrico county, VA.