Union County school receives biodiversity field trip grant funds

A Union County school district has been awarded funds from the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources, IDNR, director Wayne Rosenthal on March 2 announced the awarding of more than $98,000 in donated funds from the grant program.

More than 8,300 students will visit Illinois state parks, museums and other natural resources sites this year to learn about nature and conservation, thanks to grant funding through the 102 field trip grants. 

A news release from IDNR showed that the Jonesboro School District was among those receiving funds. Grant awards included:

•$1,280 to Jonesboro Community Unit School District No. 43 for an 8th grade field trip to the Illinois State Museum and Adams Wildlife Sanctuary in Springfield.

•$331.43 to the school for a kindergarten field trip to the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge near Marion.

“We are pleased to support learning outside the classroom with these grants. This program allows students to visit locations throughout the state to see first-hand what they’ve been learning about in the classroom,” IDNR director Rosenthal said. 

“Our future conservation leaders need the opportunity to experience Illinois’ natural resources in person.” 

The more than $98,000 which is awarded for 2017 was made possible by private donations from the Independence Tube Corporation of Bedford Park, the Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Foundation of Skokie and the D.F. and M.T. Grohne Family Foundation of Wilmington.  

The donations and funding for the grants are coordinated by the Illinois Conservation Foundation, ICF. 

The Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program has distributed more than $994,000 and reached more than 93,900 students since its inception in 2001.

Grant recipients are located throughout Illinois and represent students from pre-kindergarten through high school.

The competitive grant program allows Illinois teachers to apply for funds to take students on a field trip to study Illinois’ biodiversity. 

Learning activities must directly relate to the school’s curriculum. 

The annual application deadline is Jan. 31. Funding administered by the ICF covers expenses such as the costs of transportation and substitute teachers.

 For more information about the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program, contact the IDNR Division of Education at dnr.teachkids@illinois.gov or 217-524-4126. 

The Illinois Conservation Foundation accepts donations for the Illinois Biodiversity Field Trip Grant Program. For more information, visit www.ilcf.org. 

The 2018 application form is scheduled to be available soon, IDNR reported.