ANSONIA – Ansonia Local School District is reportedly the first in this area to have an Outdoor Education Center, and it was introduced to the public Friday afternoon.
Located just east of the football field at the east east end of town, it features a shelter surrounded by wetland [a vernal pool], a woodland habitat and a fossil collection area in the shape of the State of Ohio.
“We’re here to take an informal moment to thank all the sponsors and donors for the Outdoor Education Classroom,” said Jason Wright, environmental science and life science educator at Ansonia. “A few years ago, Pheasants Forever came up with an opportunity to invest in our local schools. They offered a grant proposal of $5,000 to construct it. It is on the school campus, using natural elements. Thanks for making this a reality for us.”
He said the school was chosen for the grant in January 2012
“Students researched and surveyed and polled the teachers,” Wright said. “Up until then we had two years to look for matching funds to create an outdoor element. It’s truly a community effort.”
He said it was FFA educator Brad Lentz who coordinated the project,.
“If it weren’t for Brad and the ag kids, none of this would be possible,” Wright said.
He added, “Over the last two years, we’ve tried to implement the project into our curriculum, with our landscaping class, the ag class doing the building and the planting of trees. We had the wetlands done professionally, but the rest was done by students via the curriculum.”
According to him, 20 trees were planted by students after they researched to find trees that are native to this area.
“Pheasants Forever came up with ideas for the prairie,” Wright said.
As for the vernal pool, it will stay wet when it’s raining and dry during the summer. Frogs and salamanders, it was noted, can be bred in the vernal ponds.
The woodland habitat will become a prairie, after biological studies are done.
“We made the fossil collection area for digs for children so they can find all different kinds of fossils,” he said.
The stone that was used for the flooring of the shelter was donated from a company in Ludlow Falls, and placed by local volunteers. The flooring will probably be treated with some coating soon to preserve it.
“The kids went wild with creativity and ideas,” Wright said. “What we’ve done with this investment has already impacted our students.”
“This is a wonderful opportunity for reintroduction back to nature and the outdoors for students,” remarked Jeff Wenning, Darke County game warden, who presented Wright with a proclamation designating Ansonia’s classroom a ‘Wild School Site,’ as well as signs telling about the classroom to post around, even inside the school. “This is the first site to be certified in Darke County. It takes motivation to do things like this.”
Inside the shelter are five benches made from recycled milk jugs and provided by the Darke County Solid Waste District. One is sponsored by R.B. Cox Insurance and Premier Crop Insurance; another by the Ansonia Board of Education; one by Darke County Solid Waste District; another in memory of Mary H. and Stanley G. Hines; and another by Greenville National Bank.
Wright said he had 15 environmental students in his class this year.
“I saw the email Pheasants Forever sent out, and I thought we have to do this,” Wright said. “Those 15 kids were just awesome. They created a survey and sent it to teachers.”
Ansonia graduate Terry Starns, who was on hand Friday, said he was there when they started talking about it, so he decided to get involved.
“They asked if anybody was interested in helping,” Starns said. “We tried to find any kinds of matches and donations and to do community service.”
The outdoor education classroom is on land measuring 66×300 feet, and there are still more plans to add features.
“We want to install bat boxes for flying mammals and set up a butterfly garden,” said Wright, who has also taught at Ansonia for 13 years. “We’ll let the curriculum decide. It depends on standards.”
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