Environmental Education Center Survey Announced

An environmental education center the Saucon Valley School District hopes to develop in conjunction with the not-for-profit Saucon Valley Foundation for Educational Innovation could benefit students by giving them a place to learn about plants and animals just outside their schools.

However, the proposed center will benefit if parents and students provide input about what they would like to see it become.

With the goal of obtaining community input in mind, the district has posted links to separate surveys--one for parents and one for students--on its website.

The parents' survey asks participants to check the boxes of classroom components and learning stations they would like to see located in the center. Some of the choices are bird feeders, a turtle habitat, a wildflower meadow, a wetland, a sundial, bat houses, a riparian (streamside) buffer, some type of solar energy application and handicapped access where possible.

The survey also asks parents to rate "how comfortable" they would be with their children's use of an environmental education center by asking them about various things such as student safety and teaching students about conservation.

The final portion of the parental survey gives participants the option to express interest in volunteering to help with tasks such as grant-writing, press releases, maintenance work and soliciting donations.

The survey for students asks about them to identify environmental education-related subjects they might be interested in learning more about, such as birds, aquatic ecosystems, trees and forests, watersheds and Pennsylvania's natural history.

Both surveys include comment boxes and will be available online via the district's website until Friday, Feb. 18.

To take the parent's survey, click here.

To take the student's survey, click here.