Pollinator Habitat Grants Offered for High School Teachers

The nonprofit Sand County Foundation is accepting applications from high school teachers in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin for pollinator habitat grants that would give their students hands-on experience in growing native wildflowers and establishing habitat for imperiled insect pollinators including monarch butterflies. Selected entrants will receive prairie seeds and seedlings, consultation and $1,000 to support project expenses. This year, the program will make two rounds of awards, with application deadlines of August 10 and November 17.

Program Coordinator Haley Diem says, “Students will germinate and grow native plants over the winter and plant them outside in the spring as an experiential learning opportunity. We encourage applicants to partner with landowners to establish pollinator habitat on agricultural and other working lands.”

Insect pollinators are essential for crop pollination and ecological diversity. In recent years, their populations have declined, partly due to loss of habitat, especially in agricultural landscapes. Teachers can obtain a free Pollinator Habitat Curriculum Guide to assist with planning, establishing, managing and monitoring prairie habitat at Tinyurl.com/PollinatorHabitatGuide.

For more information or to apply, visit SandCountyFoundation.org/schoolgrants.