Berryville, VA – The Clarke County Education Foundation (CCEF), in collaboration with the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) and Casey Trees, is proud to celebrate the successful wrap-up of the Clarke County Living Laboratories inaugural initiative. Launched in the spring of 2026, this program successfully brought high-impact, hands-on environmental literacy lessons to all third-grade students across Clarke County Public Schools (CCPS), culminating in student-led Action Projects.
The initiative was made possible through a generous $10,000 grant from PEC’s Clarke County Land Conservation Fund, alongside dedicated resource and instructional support from Casey Trees and the CCEF.
Designed as a Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE), the curriculum challenged third graders to tackle a core driving question: “What human actions impact the health of our ecosystems and how can we protect these ecosystems?” After months of outdoor field investigations, data collection, and classroom inquiry, students aimed to put their knowledge into action this May through unique campus- and community-based projects.
At Boyce Elementary School, third graders chose to focus on habitat restoration and watershed health by removing invasive plant species along the stream running behind their school, planning to replace them with native grasses. Meanwhile, third graders at Cooley Elementary School partnered with the Clarke County Litter Committee to organize and execute a targeted community litter clean-up.
Mother Nature threw a curveball on the final Action Project day, bringing a severe storm that forced the young conservationists to move their operations indoors. Pivotting quickly, the third graders channeled their energy into creating vibrant, educational posters to advocate for their environmental causes and showcase their findings.
The storm, however, also set the stage for an admirable display of community spirit. Recognizing that the native grasses at Boyce Elementary still needed to get into the ground, the school’s fifth-grade students stepped up to join the venture. The fifth graders took over the planting and successfully installed all of the native grasses on behalf of their younger peers—a powerful demonstration of school-wide collaboration and leadership.
“While the weather didn’t exactly cooperate, the resilience and adaptability shown by our students made the conclusion of this program even more special,” says Dr. Camrynn Fausey, CCEF’s Director of STEM Education and Innovation. “Seeing our third graders pivot to environmental advocacy, and watching the fifth graders step in to help finish the physical restoration work, embodies exactly what Living Laboratories is about: fostering a shared, community-wide commitment to local environmental stewardship.”
With the spring 2026 cycle complete, the CCEF and its partners look forward to building on this momentum, continuing to deepen public education and experiential science programming across Clarke County.
About the Partnering Organizations:
CCEF is a non-profit organization dedicated to generating and distributing resources to enrich teaching, inspire learning, and enhance opportunities for all students and educators in Clarke County Public Schools.
PEC is a non-profit organization that works to protect and restore the lands and waters of the Virginia Piedmont, while building stronger, more sustainable communities.
Casey Trees is a non-profit organization committed to restoring, enhancing, and protecting the tree canopy of the nation’s capital and its surrounding region, and its tree farm is located in Berryville, Virginia.
To learn more about the mission and work of the partnering organizations, visit:
- Clarke County Education Foundation: https://ccefinc.org
- Piedmont Environmental Council: https://www.pecva.org
- Casey Trees: https://caseytrees.org/farm/