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EPA awards $55,511 to two Illinois organizations for environmental education programs

Release Date: 8/4/2005
Contact Information:

CONTACT: Kären Thompson, (312) 353-8547

For Immediate Release
No. 05-OPA138

CHICAGO (Aug. 4, 2005) — U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 has awarded a $45,515 grant to the Grand Boulevard Federation, Chicago, and a $9,996 grant to Prairie Grove Consolidated School District, Crystal Lake, Ill., for innovative education projects.

The Grand Boulevard Federation, made up of more than 60 organizations, is working to meet the health, education and human service needs of Chicago’s mid-South Side residents. The grant will pay for workshops, classes and community alerts to inform neighborhood residents about air quality issues associated with the ongoing Dan Ryan Expressway construction project.

The Prairie Grove Consolidated School District will work with K-5 students, staff and the community in and around McHenry County. Students will learn about seeds, soils and plants in their classrooms before going out to the school’s land lab to experience hands-on activities. They will also study conservation by taking field trips to the McHenry County Conservation Districts Education Center.

The two Illinois groups are among 16 organizations in the six-state region that received a total of $194,900 in environmental education grant money this year from EPA. More than 130 proposals were received from groups in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

EPA grants are awarded yearly under the National Environmental Education Act, which was passed in 1990 to stimulate environmental education through design, demonstration and communications projects conceived by local organizations.