The Children's Environmental Literacy Foundation brings 21st Century Skills into K-12 Classrooms

Chappaqua, NY __ Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation (CELF) is pleased to announce guest presenters for its annual Summer Institute. CELF’s Institute provides training in Education for Sustainability for K-12 teachers and will take place at Manhattanville College on July 18-21.

Joining CELF’s facilitator team this year will be Jen Cirillo who serves as Executive Director of Professional Development for Shelburne Farms in Vermont. Shelburne Farms has been partnering with CELF for nearly a decade on creating meaningful professional learning opportunities for educators, evaluating the impact of their shared work, and advancing the field of Education for Sustainability nationally.

In addition, CELF is pleased to welcome Josh Dahn as a guest presenter. Along with mega-innovator and engineer, Elon Musk, Josh is the Cofounder and Head of School for Ad Astra School in Los Angeles, an upper elementary and middle school that primarily serves the children of SpaceX employees. Ad Astra is committed to developing analytical thinking through multidisciplinary case studies and simulations. Josh explains, “By giving students difficult decisions between seemingly equivalent options, we create classroom experiences that are meaningful, rigorous, and relevant.”

Teachers participating in CELF’s Summer Institute are coming from as far as Brazil and California and will work alongside those from the tri-state area and New England. Western Connecticut Academy for International Studies (AIS) principal, Helena Nitowsky, is concerned about public preparedness to handle environmental responsibilities of the future and is sending a team of middle school teachers. She explains, “At AIS we work to develop students’ environmental literacy skills so that they can better understand sustainability issues in our community and our world. We are so grateful to be able to send teachers to the CELF Summer Institute this year.”

CELF was founded based on the vision of a citizenry with a deep understanding of the dynamic interdependencies between human and natural systems and the critical role education plays in establishing a healthy and equitable future. Since 2003, CELF has worked with public and independent schools from across the country, delivering programs that respond to the wide range of specific educational needs of urban, suburban and rural schools.

Katie Ginsberg, CELF’s Executive Director, is passionate about preparing students for society’s current challenges, “As educators, we have an obligation prepare students today for the social, economic and environmental challenges that lie ahead. Teachers who participate in our Summer Institute come away invigorated and are equipped with innovative ways to prepare students to tackle 21st century problems.”

Awarded with membership in the Clinton Global Initiative in 2012, CELF’s work with New York City Public Schools has been recognized as a CGI Commitment to Action project.

CELF Summer Institute participants are eligible for in-service credits, or graduate credits from the Manhattanville College School of Education. Regular tuition for the Summer Institute is $395 for 3 days, plus $55 for the optional 4th day. Discounts are available for teams of 3 or more teachers from the same school. For more information about CELF and the CELF Summer Institute, go to www.celfeducation.org.

About The Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation (CELF): Founded in 2003 and based in Chappaqua, NY, CELF was created to promote awareness of the importance of sustainability education and to help schools and school districts make sustainability an ongoing part of education. To achieve this, CELF provides consulting services for schools and school districts, training for teachers and administrators and sustainability education programs for students. A 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, CELF works with all kinds of schools—urban, suburban and rural, public and private. For more information go to: www.celfeducation.org.