News Releases from Region 04

White House, EPA Honor Georgia Teachers with Environmental Education Award EPA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife also announce new environmental education partnership

(07/17/2015) ATLANTA - On Friday, July 17, the White House Council on Environmental Quality, in conjunction with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), will recognize the winners and honorable mentions for the annual Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (PIAEE). Twenty-seven teachers from across the country, including two from the State of Georgia, will be honored at a ceremony at the White House for outstanding contributions to environmental education and stewardship.

The event will be live streamed at https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/white-house-environmental-student-and-teacher-awards. Forty-four student winners of the annual President's Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) will also be honored during the ceremony.

In addition, EPA and the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) will announce the winner of NEEF's 2015 Bartlett Award. The Bartlett Award is given to an outstanding PIAEE winner for demonstrating creative integration of environmental education across subject areas, engaging others in interdisciplinary solutions to environmental challenges, and increasing student achievement within and beyond the classroom.

"To solve our future environmental challenges, young people need to understand the science behind the natural world --- and create a personal connection to the outdoors," said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. "These teachers and students are demonstrating the important role of environmental education, and showing how individual actions can help address climate change, protect the air we breathe, and safeguard the water we drink."

The PIAEE awards are given to environmental educators who use innovative, hands-on, experiential approaches. Winning teachers led unique programs such as conserving nearby aquatic ecosystems, building a hydrogen fuel-cell powered Model T car, and developing outdoor laboratories and classrooms. Four teachers from the State of Georgia will be recognized this year. Among the winners will be Robert Hodgdon from Richmond Hill Middle School in Savannah, GA and Jenna Mobley from Springdale Park Elementary in Atlanta, GA. Kathleen King, from General Ray Davis Middle School in Stockbridge, GA, and Carrie Settles from Brookwood High School in Lawrenceville, GA, will receive honorable mention recognition.

PIAEE Winners:

PIAEE Honorable Mentions:

Today, EPA is also announcing a new interagency agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to support both research and on-the-ground work that will help foster the student-nature connection through environmental education, stewardship and conservation. The agreement will help advance the Hands On the Land (HOL) program, a national network of partnerships between federal agencies and local schools that creates opportunities for students to learn in America's largest classrooms - national parks, wildlife refuges, monuments, and other federally-owned public lands. Formed in 1999, HOL now has more than 150 partnerships around the country. This agreement will support development of 20 new school partnerships. The agreement will also support environmental education research, including a review of citizen science and experiential outdoor youth education programs. This research effort will seek to improve the understanding and recognition of the role of environmental education in achieving environmental and conservation goals, helping students develop lifelong learning skills, and fostering a greater sense of respect and responsibility for the environment among communities.

For information on environmental education at EPA, visit www2.epa.gov/education.

For details on the new PEYA winners, visit http://www2.epa.gov/education/presidents-environmental-youth-award-peya-winners.

For details on the new PIAEE winners, visit http://www2.epa.gov/education/presidential-innovation-award-environmental-educators-piaee-winners.

For details on the Bartlett award winners, visit http://www.neefusa.org/bartlettaward.htm.

For information on Hands on the Land, visit www.handsontheland.org.

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