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Girls Club of Allentown Will Use $5,000 EPA Grant To Teach Pollution Prevention

Release Date: 8/4/1999
Contact Information: Roy Seneca (215) 814-5567

ALLENTOWN, Pa. -- The Girls Club of Allentown has received a $5,000 education grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, mid-Atlantic region, to continue the “WE CARE” program, (Children Acting Responsibly Towards the Environment) for a second year with an emphasis on pollution prevention.

The two-part program is primarily for inner city girls ages 5-18 from low income families. Under the first part, about 40 girls ages 11-18 will participate in an Environmental Explorers Club that meets twice a month to learn about pollution prevention. They will also get involved with activities such as helping out at a recycling facility.

Under the second part, WE CARE will offer environmental classes and pollution prevention activities over eight weeks for about 125 girls ages 5-10. Classes will include an interactive Internet curriculum and explore topics such as toxic lead poisoning, pesticide risks, safe drinking water, and air quality. Girls from the Environmental Explorers Club will assist the younger students with hands-on environmental activities.

During the program’s first year, the girls club used an EPA grant to help develop an urban community garden.

This type of a program is designed to educate students about environmental issues and encourage them to get involved in environmental activities in their community," said W. Michael McCabe, EPA’s regional administrator for the mid-Atlantic region.

EPA’s education grant program is designed to stimulate grass-roots environmental education. In the mid-Atlantic region, 25 grant recipients include schools, civic groups and non-profit organizations. Nationally, $3 million was awarded in 1999.

For more information on this grant, contact Jeff Barnett at (215) 814-3246. EPA’s regional Internet home page also has general information on the grants https://www.epa.gov/region03.



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