Throughout the school year, several Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) participated in the NatureBridge field trip, a multi-day excursion to the Prince William Forest Park designed to connect classroom learning with real-world experiences in nature.
Marsteller Middle School was among the participating schools, and students who attended the trip shared their positive experiences of trying new things, such as hiking and expanding their knowledge about wildlife.
“It was really exciting to see it. I haven't actually seen any new species besides in my local town, so this was a new experience and a new world for me,” shared seventh grader Bill Fonung.
Beyond academic enrichment, the trip offered students opportunities to bond with classmates—sharing meals, bunking together, and gathering around the campfire to toast s’mores.
“I like that we all went together in a group because we did activities that you needed a group for. We walked together, we talked together; everything was just a group,” said seventh-grade student Osman Ramram.
Kelly Anthony, a life science teacher at Marsteller Middle, has attended several NatureBridge trips and enjoys watching students step outside of their comfort zone.
“It’s just a lot of fun. The kids have a good time,” Anthony said. “The things that we talk about in class, they can say ‘here’s the real thing.’”
For one former PWCS student, the NatureBridge experience came full circle. Claire Darcy, who attended the program as a Rippon Middle School student, now works at the Prince William NatureBridge campus after graduating from college.
“I grew up visiting Prince William Forest Park with my family and as a student, so this place has always felt special to me,” Darcy shared. “I had such a positive and memorable experience when I attended the trip as a student, and I have found that I love to share my knowledge and the things that I am passionate about with others, so returning to NatureBridge as an educator felt like a natural choice.”
Darcy now guides students through the same program that once inspired her. “Getting to see the impact that the program has on students, whether they are asking me how old they have to be to come back and work here, reading their reflections at the end of the trip, or watching them try new things like handling wildlife, is always really heartwarming for me and makes this job feel extra special,” she said.
Darcy attended NatureBridge during the 2014–15 school year with her middle school science teacher, Lisa Kight. Kight has led trips to Prince William Forest Park since 2012, the first year the program launched on the East Coast.
“While the trip is designed around a field science experience, it is so much more than that. NatureBridge does a great job helping students with team building, personal growth, stewardship in nature, appreciating nature, and so much more,” Kight shared.
After hearing that Darcy would be returning to NatureBridge as an educator, Kight shared the news with her Rippon Middle colleagues.
“My message was this: we rarely know what our students do later in life, and we usually have no idea what impact, big or small, our time with them makes. For me, (and I hoped for the staff) it was a reminder that what we do (in the classroom and in extra programs) does matter, even if we don't see it,” Kight said.
You can read more about Darcy's story on the NatureBridge website.