From the bird's foot delta in southeast louisiana to the mississippi river headwaters in minnesota, the water connects US all

This federal Project Grant award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), under the NOAA Mission-Related Education Awards program (CFDA 11.008), aims to equip teachers in South Louisiana with the knowledge, experiences, and support needed to connect their students to local ecosystems through outdoor, place-based learning.

The $100,000 award, effective from December 1, 2024 to November 30, 2026, will fund two 12-hour professional learning experiences, a 40-hour summer institute, and the implementation of Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs) by the participating teachers in Year 2. This will involve coordinating with local community partners, learning about environmental issues, and leading student projects to address local environmental challenges. Teachers will also present their MWEE experiences at the annual Louisiana Science Teacher Association conference.

This project aims to facilitate teachers and students connection to their local ecosystems in south louisiana, by equipping teachers with the knowledge, experiences, and localized support they need to take student learning outdoors and empower them to make a difference in their communities. In year one (YI), the water connects US all will engage teachers from south louisiana in two 12-hour professional learning experiences (PLE) and a 40-hour summer institute based around the driving question: how does the water connect US all? Teachers will learn through outdoor place-based field experiences by engaging in local service projects and participating in reflections and share-outs to promote metacognition and reflexive understandings about their relationships with nature and teaching. Teachers will develop meaningful watershed educational experience (MWEE) facilitation skills and create project plans; then in year two (Y2) they will implement sustainable MWEE practices. With the support of the project team, teachers will locate and coordinate with local community partners to apply MWEE principles by learning about local environmental issues through multiple field-based learning opportunities for their students, writing and reflection both inside and outside of the classroom, and implement a local environmental action project. Teachers come together for one final 12-hour PLE to reflect on their experiences and impact. Teachers will present their MWEE experience at the annual louisiana science teacher association conference.