Funding for and commitment to PBE projects fluctuates from year to year, administration to administration.
Build projects for sustainability
- Use a team teaching approach
- Focus on a given year with eye on future
- Create a club to sustain a multi-year project: eg. garden
- Conduct student research each year and hold a symposium every few years
- Develop revolving projects that students check in on every few years (natural inventory or monitoring, for example).
- Have school-wide focus on one subject (eg: a bio-blitz, one day natural inventory of the school yard)
- Take one step each year toward a long term goal (eg: water quality monitoring)
Develop a diverse funding base for PBE projects
- Involve students in all fundraising activity
- Seek in-kind contributions from businesses and individuals
- Use free resources: county foresters, state employees as possible
- Use town resources – donations from businesses and time from people
- Seek grant-writing assistance gratis from a local expert
- Models of grants on the web for teachers to use
- Administrative/board buy-in via education time (get on the agenda)