EARTH Program Encourages Youth to Conserve Water, Environment
When more than 4,500 students across Kansas get excited about dirt, Tonya Bronleewe knows there has to be a good reason.
As program coordinator for the Earth Awareness Researchers for Tomorrow’s Habitat (EARTH) program, teaching students about soil, water, air, and living resources is all part of her goal.
EARTH began as a local program in Sedgwick County, “but it grew so big that they needed someone to hire to take on the job full time,” Bronleewe said. “I was hired for the position, and it has grown to a statewide program.”
There were 600 students in Sedgwick County the first year, but today, the program reaches 14 counties and 4,502 students in Kansas – and this is just the third year of expansion.
EARTH is an environmental education program geared to middleschool students – now expanding to high school students – who are taught by participating local teachers. During the year-long program, teachers receive curriculum kits with 26 lessons that can be taught to students from five key areas: land, air, water, living resources, and impacts.
Each county that participates in the program hosts an EARTH workshop in April.
In 2006, there were 2,310 students in 18 Sedgwick County schools who took part in EARTH programs.
Each year, students from each participating county attend a career exploration workshop, where they get a chance to apply what they’ve learned to “real world” professions. Bronleewe said the day-long workshops are a culmination of everything the students have learned through the year.
“Students really enjoyed this year’s activities and presenters. They were able to apply the information learned in class to real life applications,” said Kathy Peavey, a teacher at Wichita’s Hadley Middle School. “These students get so excited about the program that they write about EARTH in their English essays at school, and then teach the activities to their brothers and sisters at home.”
Financial assistance for EARTH is provided by an EPA-Section 319 nonpoint source pollution control grant through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment Water Management Section in cooperation with K-State Research and Extension and the Kansas Center for Agriculture Resources and the Environment.
Business groups participating in the workshops include conservation districts, county extension workers, watershed coordinators, and other water-quality agencies.
Their combined efforts have helped students learn more about Kansas’ work in developing Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategies (WRAPS) for high-priority watersheds.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment provides grants to help areas develop and implement plans to maintain and improve their watershed. Bronleewe said the EARTH programs help by teaching students at a young age how to improve water quality.
Bronleewe said she hopes the program can “continue to grow and reach more students. They’re the ones who are going to be influencing our environment in the future. In teaching them now, we’ll be 10 steps ahead in preserving Kansas resources in the days to come.”
Tonya Bronleewe
316-722-7721
^In the photo: Middle-school students take part in an activity that illustrates how all parts of nature are dependent on each other for a balanced ecosystem.
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