Among others in Central Oregon, the Foundation awarded a $15,000 grant to the Children’s Forest of Central Oregon for professional development opportunities for Central Oregon teachers and volunteers to develop and implement outdoor, inquiry-based lessons focused on Central Oregon’s natural resources.
The year was 1957 and the site was Dead Indian Soda Springs Camp. That is where Dr. Irene Hollenbeck of the Southern Oregon College of Education took fifth and sixth grade students and teachers from Medford’s Westside Elementary School for a weeklong trip to explore the natural environment. It was an idea that took off. 58 years later, Outdoor School has educated, enriched and inspired several generations of Oregon’s students. The Gray Family Foundation is proud to support outdoor education for students across the region with grants such as one for $15,000 to the Children’s Forest of Central Oregon for professional development opportunities for Central Oregon teachers and volunteers to develop and implement outdoor, inquiry-based lessons focused on Central Oregon’s natural resources.
For many years, the Gray family has supported access to outdoor education for Oregon students as a long-term investment in cultivating civic responsibility. “Experiencing the benefits of Oregon’s natural resources helps ensure that these systems will be sustained. This is of paramount importance to the state’s future health,” said Nancy Bales, executive director of the Gray Family Foundation.
Today, the Foundation’s support has grown to include camp maintenance and teacher professional development in addition to sending kids to outdoor school and on community field trips.
“We know that Outdoor School helps kids develop leadership, critical thinking and social skills. It also gives them a taste of scientific inquiry and applied learning. With the results that we see, the cost of getting kids into the outdoors is a deal,” said Bales.
In total, the Gray Family Foundation awarded more than $222,000 towards teacher professional development and more than $465,000 towards Outdoor School. Learn more by visiting http://grayff.org/.
About the Gray Family Foundation
Launched in 2007 as the Gray Family Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation, the Gray Family Foundation’s Environmental Education Program seeks to institutionalize a series of age appropriate experiences for students, teachers, and citizens that build a sense of place and responsibility toward Oregon and the region. Since 2007, the Gray Family Foundation has awarded more than $8.5 million in grants statewide. http://grayff.org/
