NEWS RELEASES
06.09.2010
The Cole Creek Project at Work: Nathan Hale Takes Learning Outside
OMAHA - They dug. They planted. They paused to examine their work under a warm spring sun before moving on to the next task.
For a group of students at Nathan Hale Middle School, May 18 was not your typical school day. It was the culmination of Hale Horticulture, a new gardening class offered as part of the school’s Expanded Learning Time curriculum.
The class was funded by a 2009 mini-grant from The Cole Creek Project, a $1.6 million urban stream restoration initiative in the Benson-Ames Alliance (B-AA). Schools, neighborhood associations, churches and civic groups located within the B-AA were eligible to apply for funding for projects that addressed stormwater management or water conservation.
Prior to planting day, the students learned about water conservation techniques and researched different types of drought resistant plants that would thrive on the school grounds, said Candace Lee, a teacher at Nathan Hale and coordinator of Hale Horticulture. They also prepared the garden beds for planting and will be responsible for future care and maintenance. Now that the plants – a variety of hearty flowers and grasses – are in the ground, subsequent classes can observe and record plant progress and growth.
“The mini-grant allowed us to fund the equipment and supplies needed to make Hale Horticulture grow,” Lee said. “Our students can take the lessons they learned about water conservation related to landscaping and apply them to their lives outside school. Perhaps we’ve even encouraged the development of a future landscape architect or two.”
For more information about Nathan Hale’s Expanded Learning Time curriculum, visit www.ops.org/middle/nathanhale.
The Cole Creek Project, a stormwater demonstration project, is the first to follow the City of Omaha’s Urban Design Element recommendation that calls for transforming the Papio Creek waterways into a citywide public park and recreation system. It’s a partnership of the City of Omaha Departments of Public Works and Parks, Recreation and Public Property; Roncalli Catholic High School; Douglas County; Omaha by Design; the Benson-Ames Alliance; Big Muddy Workshop; Hayes Environmental L.L.C.; Lamp, Rynearson & Associates and Olsson Associates. The project is funded by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District.
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The Cole Creek Project Launches Mini-Grant Program