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Conservation Action
| Habitat Restoration | view printable page |
Goals
- Connect students with nature and local natural history.
- Educate students about environmental issues to become more informed citizens.
- Clean up the dumpsite the district was using and restore it to a habitat with more biodiversity of native plant and animal species.
- Gain experience mentoring and teaching younger students about environmental concepts.
- 25 acres of land adjacent to Elgin High School. We are starting small and only working on 1/3 of the total acreage.
1. Network with outside agencies.
- Started in 1995 and began very slowly by taking classes and contacting conservation experts from the:
- North Cook County & Kane-DuPage Soil & Water Conservation District
- Cook County Forest Preserve District
- Morton Arboretum
- Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)
- Joined KESTREL - Kane Environmental Teacher Science Resource Education League
- Utilized IDNR's program, "Acres of Wildlife," a step-by-step process on how to manage an area. An IDNR staff came out and assessed the land and made recommendations for plans on how to move forward as well as what native plants would do well.
- Received permission from administration. A custodial staff member received herbicide license.
- Removed fencing around the property by holding workdays for students and parents.
- Cut non-native trees at edge of woodlands.
- Used Mighty Acorns as a model curriculum. Brought "feeder" elementary schools to Elgin High School for field trips, three times a year (in each season). The high school students led the various activities for the field trip, therefore having to learn all the concepts well enough to teach them to others.
- Loppers
- Hand saws
- Gloves
- Chainsaws
- Wheelbarrows
- Plants
- Seeds
- Wood chips
- Seeds
- Curricula
- Project Learning Tree, Project Wild
- Leopold Project
- "Resource Conservation" - Terrestrial and Aquatic, from Illinois Department of Conservation
- Chicago Wilderness Atlas of Biodiversity
- Mighty Acorns
- Very minimal!
- Lots of time from parents and students.
- Approximately $1,000-2,000 for tools and actual management of property
- Approximately $8,000 for buses for elementary schools.
- Applied for Grand Victoria Foundation, Toyota Tapestry, & McArthur Foundation grants. Were denied. So, started to look elsewhere and received a Learn & Serve grant from the Illinois State Board of Education.
- Sent out press releases and letters to Illinois Senators and Representatives. Received recognition from Representative Hoeft and a garden club sent money after reading a press release.
- Students are learning about natural history and taking ownership for the property around the school.
- Students see change over time of the natural area being restored.
- High school students are receiving practical experience teaching curriculum and leading younger students through activities.
- Find a site close to the school.
- Begin networking and getting help from local conservation agencies.
- Research various curricula available.
- Attend environmental education conferences, such as Environmental Education Association of Illinois (www.eeai.net) and/or North American Association of Environmental Educators
Deborah Perryman, Elgin High School
email: Perryman_d/ehs@dns.u46.k12.il.us
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