Students at Region 9 School of Applied Technology in Mexico take part in an ice fishing expedition. Submitted photo

The Maine Environmental Education Association has announced the recipients of 2024-25 mini grants for outdoor learning and to fund Wabanaki studies.

This year, 138 schools from all counties will receive a collective $156,057 in funding for experiential outdoor learning projects. The grants, which offer up to $1,500 in funding, empower teachers to design and implement nature-based learning experiences that enhance students’ academic, social and emotional growth while connecting them to the local environment around them, according to a news release from Emory Harger, MEEA communications coordinator.

Local schools receiving grants include Region 9 School of Applied Technology in Mexico, where students and their families are able to check out 70 ice fishing kits from the school that include traps and augers. Region 9 also hosted an ice fishing expedition for nearly 100 middle school students.

The Maine Academy of Natural Sciences in Fairfield also received a grant, which allowed four students to participate in a two-day immersive residency at the Carpenter’s Boat Shop in Pemaquid.

Several local schools received mini grants to expand Wabanaki studies outdoor learning projects.

This year, the association collaborated with Brianne Lolar, Panawahpskek (Penobscot) citizen and Maine Department of Education Wabanaki studies specialist and her daughter Kaya Lolar to provide Wabanaki studies professional development training to teachers in Maine. This year’s mini grants will support a wide range of Wabanaki studies projects, including inviting Wabanaki guest speakers to visit with students and weave education about the cultural importance of basketmaking, protecting ash trees, hunting, fishing, and gathering with nature-based education.

Local grant recipients for Wabanaki studies include:

• Oxford Hills School District in Norway, which will use the funds for its outdoor programs at Roberts Farm Experiential Learning. Funds will purchase a Wabanaki-made brown ash basket for the Ash tree curriculum, a birch bark basket for maple sap collection made for maple syrup curriculum, Indigenous books, and a Penobscot Language Map.

• Day Mountain Regional Middle School in Strong will conduct a comprehensive study on ash trees, the emerald ash borer, and its impact on Wabanaki culture. Funds will be used to purchase pole pruners, 35 pair protective glasses, 35 hard hats, parachute cord, binoculars, and other supplies.

• Messalonskee High School in Oakland will invite a Wabanaki guest speaker to show students how to strip wood for basket making, incorporating outdoor learning into the process.

To learn more or to apply for future cycles, visit meeassociation.org. For more information email Anna Sommo at anna@meeassociation.org or visit meeassociation.org.

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