
Freedom
and
Patriot
High
Schools
have
been
chosen
to
benefit
from
a
$149,000
grant
from
the
National
Oceanic
and
Atmospheric
Administration's
(NOAA)
Marine
Debris
Program.
George
Mason
University
(GMU)
and
Keep
Prince
William
Beautiful
will
administer
the
grant.
The
School
Division's
Energy
Management
and
Sustainability
Team
(EMAST)
assisted
the
schools
in
earning
this
opportunity
and
will
help
coordinate
the
activities
associated
with
the
grant.
Freedom
High
Biology
Teacher
Jessica
Dorion
and
Patriot
High
Earth
Science
Teacher
Melinda
Landry
will
lead
20
teachers
and
35
high
school
student
delegates
in
a
project
that
focuses
on
single-use
plastic
water
bottles.
The
project
will
span
two
years
with
the
first
year
primarily
spent
learning
about
the
watershed,
aquatic
life,
data
collection
and
analysis,
and
behavior
management.
The
second
year
will
involve
student-led
project-based
initiatives
to
educate
the
community
on
the
understanding
of
marine
debris
and
how
debris
becomes
part
of
the
aquatic
ecosystem.
The
grant
aligns
well
with
the
curriculum
taught
in
Freedom's
Center
for
Environmental
and
Natural
Sciences
(CENS)
specialty
program
and
lessons
teachers
at
Patriot
conduct
using
their
recently
transformed
outdoor
classroom
that
features
a
natural
pond/aquatic
area.
EMAST
will
help
both
schools
facilitate
and
coordinate
the
project
activities.
"Our
community
partners
have
a
shared
vision
of
a
sustainable
Prince
William
County
and
conserving
resources
and
the
environment.
It
is
our
students
who
will
carry
on
this
work
now
and
into
the
future,"
said
Jeanne
Jabara,
EMAST
energy
education
coordinator.
Landry
shared,
"It's
exciting
to
be
recognized
by
NOAA
for
our
efforts
in
PWCS.
With
the
financial
assistance
from
NOAA
and
the
expertise
from
others
in
our
community,
I'm
hopeful
that
we
can
make
a
difference
in
the
amount
of
single-use
plastic
waste
making
its
way
to
our
watersheds
through
education
of
our
youth."
In
the
fall
of
2019,
Freedom
adopted
the
stormwater
drainage
pond
on
their
school
grounds.
The
adoption,
coordinated
through
the
Prince
William
Soil
and
Water
Conservation
District
(PWSWCD)
and
Prince
William
County's
Department
of
Public
Works
Watershed
Division,
provided
the
students
with
guidance
on
the
clean-up.
"Students
learned
how
trash
on
their
own
campus
could
have
an
impact
on
wildlife
as
far
away
as
the
Chesapeake
Bay.
They
saw
firsthand
that
most
of
the
trash
collected
was
plastics,
specifically
plastic
beverage
bottles,"
Dorion
shared.
This
project
made
students
more
aware
of
the
overuse
of
plastic
bottles
within
their
school
and
sparked
their
interest
in
reducing
single-use
plastic
waste.
The
grant
money
from
NOAA
will
help
students
continue
their
efforts
in
teaching
others
about
the
importance
of
how
marine
debris
effects
watersheds.
For
more
information
on
the
work
that
PWCS
students
will
be
involved
in
through
participation
in
the
program,
check
out
NOAA's
Marine
Debris
Program
account
on
Twitter,
Facebook
and
their
website.