A group of students, staff, administrators, and parents from U-32 and Montpelier High Schools, School to Earth, as well as statewide partners including local farmers, the VYCC, Vermont Technical College, and Food Works, has been awarded a $10,000 Outdoor Classroom Grant from Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation. The Sustainability Collaboration will use these funds to further develop their sustainability education program by building a greenhouse at U-32 high school, enhancing Montpelier High’s existing greenhouse to include irrigation and solar electric monitoring, and expanding garden patches at each school.

The Sustainability Collaboration is in the process of developing a combination of academics, work and service-learning that will enable students at both high schools to earn a diploma with a specialization in sustainability. This past summer the VYCC supported eight students from U-32 and Montpelier High School as part of a Community Crew with a focus on sustainability projects. The crew worked on building the Cross Vermont Trail for alternative transportation, as well as invasive species and erosion control along the Winooski. The crew attended VYCC’s Leadership Retreat in July; the students on the crew initiated and developed a Sustainability Fair that took place in October, 2007.

To learn more please visit the full press release. If you are interested in forming a Sustainability Collaboration in the Woodstock, Montpelier or Burlington area please contact Kat Coons at kcoons@vycc.org or 434 – 3969 ext. 147.