Rays sent six local teachers on international Earthwatch expeditions
Special Award Ceremony Scheduled at Tropicana Field Sunday
September 14, 2010, Boston, MA – Six local teachers who participated in Earthwatch expeditions this summer thanks to support from the Rays Baseball Foundation will be recognized at a special awards ceremony before the Rays game on Sunday, September 19, at Tropicana Field.
In addition to the expedition experience, each teacher receives a $2,500 award for their school to implement a local conservation project. This is the fifth year the Rays Baseball Foundation has sponsored teacher fellows on Earthwatch expeditions.
“By doing real science with top scientists, the teachers invigorate their own spirit of discovery and return to their classrooms fired up for the new school year,” said Allison Roach, Educator and Youth Program Manager for Earthwatch. “It’s incredibly rewarding to watch how they take their newfound enthusiasm and knowledge and funnel it back into classroom and community projects where the real magic of environmental stewardship can take root. We are grateful for the continued generosity of the Tampa Bay Rays in honoring its area teachers with the opportunity of a lifetime—one that translates into positive action back home.”
Teacher fellow Dawn Grossman (left) and volunteer Chris Carbone collect data that may help bolster coffee yields and biological diversity
“This Fellowship has not only renewed my spirit for the new school year, but allowed me the opportunity to capture what I teach in the form of pictures, stories and new lesson ideas,” said Stefanie Frump, a teacher at Campbell Park Middle School who participated on a coastal ecology project in the Bahamas.
Frump plans to use her award money to spearhead a long-term watershed project based on some of her studies in the Bahamas. “The Science Club will do water quality analysis on samples collected by students on field trips,” she said. “They will create a herbarium of the plants they see, study the local wildlife and then report their findings to the whole school during Ocean Week, which is our annual spring celebration.”
This year’s recipient list, along with the projects they participated in, includes:
- Michele Bubley-Wiehagen, Foster Elementary School, Coastal Ecology of the Bahamassullivan
- Stefanie Frump, Campbell Park Middle School, Coastal Ecology of the Bahamas
- Dawn Grossman, Deer Park Elementary, Costa Rican Coffee from Community to Cup
- Jane Hayes, Belcher Elementary, Costa Rican Coffee from Community to Cup
- Laura Katz, Shore Acres Elementary, Songbirds of the Rocky Mountains
- Martyne LaDuke, Anderson Environmental Center, Songbirds of the Rocky Mountains
For more information: Kristen Kusek, Earthwatch, (978) 450-1281 or Rays Communications Dept., (727) 825-3242.
Earthwatch (earthwatch.org) is an international environmental nonprofit whose mission is to engage people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment. Earthwatch currently supports 60 environmental research projects in nearly 40 countries. More than 91,000 volunteers have joined Earthwatch scientists in the field since its founding in 1971, contributing thousands of days to essential fieldwork.
The Tampa Bay Rays have proudly represented Major League Baseball in the Tampa Bay region since 1998. The organization and its foundation are committed to building a strong community bond through meaningful interaction and charitable contributions.