Article from Yuma Sun Newspaper by staff Writer Amy Crawford
G.W. Carver Elementary School students brought the spirit of their sensory garden to the District One governing board meeting Monday evening.
The school was Superintendent Jamie Sheldahl’s “school showcase” choice of the month, an agenda item that highlights the programs going on at individual campuses.
Carver School has recently been accepted as an Eco School, said Board President Karen Griffin, after Principal Deb Drysdale applied for the program. The program is available in communities where General Motors, one of the program’s sponsors, has facilities.
Eco Schools work in conjunction with the National Wildlife Federation to help schools choose “green” pathways to help students learn to care about and nurture the environment, according to the NWF website.
Jennifer Dowd, the national K-12 education manager who is piloting the GM Eco-Green / NWF Partnership, was on hand to explain how the program works to board members and audience. An Arizona Wildlife Federation Region Four board member Valerie Morrill was also on hand to support the partnership. Morrill was also representing the Yuma’s Master Gardener Association and The Native Plants Society of Yuma.
Dowd, who flew in from Michigan, has been to Yuma several times to start up Eco Schools. Other schools in the program include Amerischools Academy South and Desert View Middle & High School.
One way students are participating in the program is through their sensory garden, Griffin said. GM Proving Ground engineer Brian Richards is helping on the campus along with parent volunteers. Students made a trip to Yuma Nursery to pick out plants that engage the five senses: sight, smell, taste, hearing and touch.
“It was just a great presentation,” Griffin said.
