OLYMPIA — Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) and Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) have announced awards totaling $3.7 million in grants that will provide thousands of Washington’s students with outdoor learning experiences.
The Outdoor Learning Grants program was created by the Washington Legislature in 2022 to develop and support outdoor educational experiences for Washington’s public school students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The program is administered by RCO in partnership with OSPI.
Klickitat, Grant, Kittitas and Yakima counties were awarded $127,392 to expand the Careers in Conservation Summer Program, according to a press release.
The Careers in Conservation Summer program is “a six-week, field-based program that engages high school students in natural resources work,” continued the press release. “The fisheries enhancement group will expand its program from serving two Yakima high schools to at least 12 high schools in Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat and Yakima counties. As a requirement of participation, the students will share their new knowledge with 500 classmates and younger students.
“Participants will spend two to three days each week outdoors engaged in natural resources work, including maintaining restoration sites, tagging and releasing coho salmon at fish hatcheries, shadowing a state firefighter, and working alongside fish biologists to assess stream health and survey fish. The primary goals of the project are to build students’ skills, awareness, and appreciation for natural resource jobs; help underserved youth earn credits toward graduation; provide students with documents of competency in job skills and knowledge; and provide professional development opportunities for teachers,” said the press release.
“With these funds, community-based organizations will partner with school districts to take learning outside for more than 20,000 Washington students,” said State Superintendent Chris Reykdal. “These programs provide students with opportunities to learn in meaningful and engaging ways where they can understand the unique context of their community. I’m grateful for the Legislature’s investment in this area and for our partnership with the Recreation and Conservation Office.”
“We received a large number of high-quality applications,” said Megan Duffy, director of the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office. “It shows what a tremendous need there is for this kind of outdoor education across the state.”
The program priorities encourage grant recipients to incorporate the state’s Since Time Immemorial Curriculum, which infuses traditional ecological knowledge into their outdoor learning experiences.
To learn more about the Outdoor Learning Grants program, visit the RCO website.
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