Carmichaels teacher honored with grant
WAYNESBURG – When Carmichaels High School teacher Kevin Willis looked around the room on April 11 at the spring luncheon of the Greene County Association of School Retirees, he was seeing plenty of familiar faces. Willis, a science teacher with a passion for the environment, was there to accept a $750 grant for his innovative Native Plant Restoration Project.
“We are delighted that we had an opportunity to recognize an educator with the vision that while teaching, he is demonstrating to his students how they can protect their environment and enrich their county,” president Patty Jones said. “Alice Souders, our education support chairperson, researched candidates and after reading Willis’ proposal, realized the full scope of his activities. We are very impressed by the number of students this project impacts.”
“Kevin, who grew up in Greene County schools is a glowing example of that expression, “What goes around comes around.” He, his students, his school district, and his childhood teachers can all be proud of what this project has accomplished,” retired teacher Jerry Hardy agreed.
“This grant really means a great deal because it was given by the School Retirees Association, many of whom have invested in me, personally,” Willis said. “It was great to see so many familiar faces and hear their congratulations for the award and their interest in the project.”
Willis brought an oak seedling as a thank you gift to show the roots of environmental learning that are being planted by his project. It went home with past president Cathy Butcher who happened to have a backyard big enough to accommodate what a little acorn will one day become.
That seedling, along with 700 other little oaks and 250 native perennials are being grown and nurtured by students in the greenhouse the school district received funding for in 2011 through the Community Foundation of Greene County’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit program and a Toyota Tapestry grant. Other classes have also begun projects in the greenhouse, including sixth graders and Life Skills students, Willis was happy to report. “We are grateful for the support of the school board and administration and indebted to the amazing efforts of our maintenance crew for the construction of this fully automated greenhouse. We plan to expand next year by adding more variety of species.”
Willis celebrated his project’s first season March 21 with a Greenhouse Open House to thank the grantors, educators and school district personal who helped make it happen. The fully automated 24-foot-by-48-foot greenhouse can produce a bumper crop of native plants that students are learning to grow into healthy specimens. Students design a restoration plan to get these plants back into the environment and research invasive species then re-vegetate selected areas with propagated natives. They will publish their findings to educate others about the aesthetics, diversity and environmental importance of native plants.
“We have had various experts in the field share their expertise in raising native plant species. These experts have been impressed not only with our current projects, but also with our students’ involvement and eagerness to participate,” Willis said.
“Alpha Natural Resources, PA Bituminous Safety Association, a DEP Environmental Education grant, and a PLT Greenworks! grant also provide funding for equipment and supplies.”
Community Foundation director Bettie Stammerjohn came to the March open house with more good news – the Foundation had just approved an additional EITC grant of $1,500. It will fund an automatic watering system for times when school is not in session, benches for additional growing space, heating tubes for increased germination, and tree tubes to protect the seedlings once planted in the habitat along with equipment and supplies to keep the Greenhouse project sustainable in the future.