The nonprofit Elizabeth River Project has been awarded a three-year, $315,000 federal grant to engage all fourth graders in Chesapeake Public Schools in intensive study of the blue crab. The goal will be for them to understand and find ways to address the impacts of sea level rise on river life, themselves and their community.
Watermen, nautically themed folk musicians and the Elizabeth River Project’s Dominion Energy Learning Barge and Paradise Creek Nature Park will all play a role in the project, which is funded by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) grant. Dominion Energy Foundation awarded $20,000 to the project to join local donors providing required key matching funds from the community and supports Project Blue Crab as part of the Foundation’s “Environmental Education and Stewardship” grants program that supports environmental projects in 10 states.
More than 100 Chesapeake teachers and their 3,000 students will be involved in the project over three years. Students will learn sciences related to Virginia Standards of Learning and will plan and carry out hands-on projects to make a positive difference for the environment. They will be invited to present results at the Feb. 29, 2020 Youth Resilience Expo with Elizabeth River Project at Norfolk Botanical Garden.