Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation Awards Environment Grant to Herndon Elementary

Herndon Elementary School in Fairfax County recently received a $2,500 environmental stewardship grant from the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation. Funds will be allocated to purchase supplies and curriculum materials for the school’s outdoor garden, which is located in the interior courtyard area of the school.

According to Jill Olinger, a parent volunteer and co-leader along with Amanda Geary of the Garden Program at Herndon Elementary, the teachers are helping to create STEM-based lesson plans that are centered on the garden. “For example, the fifth grade will study math in the garden and the kindergartners will study insects,” she said. “We’re also planning a lecture series in the garden to include honeybees and taste testing of products that we grow. It’s a fun way to reinforce what the children are learning in the classroom and we strive to align the curriculum with Virginia’s Standards of Learning for each grade level."

Olinger added that their goal is to have all of the school’s 900-plus students be involved in garden activities during the academic year. “This generous grant from the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation is creating new learning opportunities to help our students have a better understanding of their environment, and that’s very exciting.”

Tim Sargeant, external affairs representative for Dominion Energy, commented, “The outdoor garden is providing some very meaningful educational outcomes for the students at Herndon Elementary School. We are very pleased to support this worthwhile environmental initiative."

In April 2017, the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation awarded $1.2 million through a competitive grant process to more than 100 schools, organizations and communities in 10 states served by Dominion Energy. The grants support environmental education and stewardship projects that preserve, enhance or make nature more accessible. Since 2003, Dominion Energy has donated nearly $30 million to a wide variety of environmental projects across its footprint. For more information, visit www.dominionenergy.com.

PHOTO CAPTION:

Students at Herndon Elementary School love learning about nature and the environment in their outdoor garden. The school recently received a grant from the Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation to support the Garden Program. The adults from left are Amanda Geary, co-leader of the Garden Program; Jill Olinger, co-leader of the Garden Program; and Tim Sargeant, external affairs representative with Dominion Energy.