PROSPERITY — Twenty South Carolina schools were chosen to receive grants that will support the education of the next generation of environmental stewards, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) announced.
“Champions of the Environment” awards are issued each school year to foster environmental education and action in South Carolina’s classrooms, from kindergarten through 12th grade. Teachers apply for grant funding by outlining their educational project that focuses on pollution or waste reduction, water or energy efficiency, or preservation of natural areas. The grant program is sponsored by DHEC, Dominion Energy, and Sylvamo, with assistance from the Environmental Education Association of South Carolina. We’re excited to award grants to such a large number of schools this year,” said Amanda Ley, DHEC’s coordinator for the Champions of the Environment program. “This is the largest number of projects we’ve awarded in the program’s history.” Ten schools won $2,500, four schools won $2,000, and six schools were awarded $1,000.”
This year’s projects include gardens, habitat restoration projects, litter prevention, citizen science, waste management, and alternate energy sources. Mid-Carolina High School was one of the schools chosen to receive a grant, they won $2,500.
Mid-Carolina’s project was a litter prevention and pollinator garden project.
“At this Green Step school, students will work with Newberry County Soil and Water Conservation and Master Gardeners to create a pollinator garden using native plants. They’ll also develop an anti-litter campaign, creating educational materials to be shared with the school and surrounding community,” per the DHEC website.