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PARTNERSHIPS
Partnership "Electrifies" Chicago Park District How one of the nations largest electric and gas companies added power to the Chicago Park District BY PEGGY STEWART AND KATHLEEN ANNE SANDER One of the nation's largest electric and gas companies, along with its Illinois-based subsidiary, have teamed up with the Chicago Park District to sponsor a wide range of environmental restoration projects and nature-based programming throughout the city. Through a three-year $1.5 million sponsorship, Exelon and ComEd are funding new programs designed to help people of all ages enjoy and learn about Chicago's environment. Mary O'Toole, Director of Environmental Strategy for ComEd, and one of the members of the development team for the partnership, said teaming up with the Chicago Park District was an easy decision. "Exelon and ComEd are dedicated to preserving the environment and supporting math and science education opportunities," O'Toole said. "This partnership helps turn Chicago's parks into outdoor classrooms, and that's why this sponsorship is a perfect fit for us." The partnership focuses on creating signage in 50 nature areas throughout the city, restoring some of the park systems cherished nature areas to their original design and function, and funding several environmental educational programs for children and families. "On-site information is a whole new initiative that the public has been requesting for years," said Chicago Park District General Superintendent David Doig. "To make our nature areas more accessible, visitors will soon see welcome, interpretive and trail signs at locations throughout the city." Exelon and ComEd's commitment will help restore Humboldt Park prairie stream back to the original turn-of-the-century plan designed by Jens Jensen, the famed landscape architect. It will also fund smaller projects in West Pullman, Gompers and Ronan Park. The renovation of the Humboldt Park prairie stream includes two exciting elements. The first is the actual restoration of the prairie landscape. The second is the installation of renewable power sources, including solar panels and a windmill, to provide power for recirculation pumps, a first for the Chicago Park District. The lagoon project will restore ecological balance to the prairie stream by deepening swampy, overgrown areas to revive open water, and introducing native plants to support wildlife. Three ornamental fountains will also be installed. "ComEd and Exelon's support has enabled us to continue to maintain, enhance and expand several of our environmental educational programs," said Doig.
Some of the programs supported by ComEd and Exelon include: Nature Oasis Program The program was designed to help Chicagoans of all ages experience the wonder of nature in the city. The program, designed to educate people about their environment, is based at four neighborhood parks and uses hands-on experiences like water sampling, seed saving, and even overnight campouis for the family. Junior Earth Team A career development program, JET targets teens and young people, helping them develop an awareness and connection to the environment, their parks and their city through stewardship projects. Students gain work experience and learn about environmental careers from professionals in the field. Outdoor Explorers - A school-year outdoor program, Outdoor Explorers introduces 8 to 12 year olds to the environment through activities. Children watch and record weather, use a compass, work with maps, study local geology and investigate their parks. Stewardship Days - a unique program, stewardship days uses a special approach, which emphasizes the fact that children can and must explore nature, as it exists in their city, parks and neighborhoods, rather than as a phenomenon that they must travel great distances to visit. Through hands-on learning with partner organizations, children are engaged in the environment, fostering an awareness of their connection to nature and responsibility for it. Under Illinois Skies -The most advanced nature based programming, Under Illinois Skies provides children with a rustic camping experience, 10 Illinois Parks and Recreation which immerses them in nature through a three-day camping trip allowing them to use the tools they have learned in prior environmental programs. They plan and cook meals, learn about Illinois natural history and habitats, watch birds, study aquatic life, canoe, star gaze and completely experience life outside of the city.
"The Chicago Park District does a wonderful job introducing kids to science and the environment," O'Toole said. "Our goal is to make them lifelong stewards of the environment." Through their efforts, Exelon and ComEd are helping the Chicago Park District increase park visitors' awareness of nature and the environment. Through the restoration and installation of interpretative signage, they are sharing the wonders of Chicago's natural areas and habitats. According to Doig, their commitment enhances the park's environmental education programs and the lives of thousands of city kids. "As a major corporate sponsor to the Chicago Park District, ComEd and Exelon have found a new way to serve their customers, shareholders and the city, where their headquarters are stationed and many of their employees live," O'Toole said. "For years, the Chicago Park District has been considered one of the best park districts in the nation with more than 250 fully programmed parks," she said. "This is why we want to be a part of their success. We want to support an organization that is dedicated to future generations and helping all of us learn how to preserve and appreciate our environment." Peggy Stewart is the manager of Outdoor and Environmental Education for the Chicago Park District. Kathleen Anne Sandner is with Jayne Thompson & Associates, LTD. for more information about the Chicago Park District visit the website at www.chicogoparkdistrict.com. Teacher Turns Chicago Parks Into Classrooms A first-of-its-kind highlight of the Exelon and ComEd sponsorship is the Exelon Environmental Fellowship, which has recruited an outstanding teacher to use Chicago parks as classrooms by developing science curriculum based on their natural attributes for the Chicago Public Schools.
Angela Dumas, the first Exelon Fellow and an accomplished science teacher on loan from the Chicago Public Schools, uses state and local education standards as the curricular foundation of her work. She builds curricular units around an individual park. When the students are on-site, the program consists of a lesson activity, aligned to standards and goals appropriate for the grade and class; a stewardship activity, which connects the students directly with the natural setting being studied and allows high school students to fulfill their service learning obligation; and a reflection activity, for students to think about what they have learned and relate it to past experiences. Dumas bolsters the in-park activities with pre- and post-visit classroom sessions, as well as teacher training. Since starting her new assignment in September of 2002, Dumas has led more than 700 students of all ages to habitats, wetlands, prairies and forests.. .all within the city limits of Chicago. Students have learned how to care for and maintain the natural areas. They have built bird and bat houses, collected and distributed seeds, removed invasive species, picked up trash and restored vandalized areas. They have also surveyed the parks for the number and types of different plants, mammals, insects, birds, reptiles and amphibians. So far, Dumas is creating more curricular elements based on the environments of several parks that are close to numerous schools. Eventually, the program could produce teaching aids spanning the length and breadth of the Chicago Park District's natural resources. Mayor Daley has said he wants Chicago to be the "greenest" city in America. He has provided the leadership to encourage the creation of park district programs that introduce students to the city's many natural resources. The Exelon Environmental Fellowship has fit perfectly into that plan. It has also provided a crucial link between what the Chicago Park District has and what the Chicago Public Schools need. This program will significantly benefit Chicago students and show them additional reasons to come out and appreciate their parks. May/June 2003 11 |
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