Project A.C.O.R.N. Liaison Report on NISD Environmental Education Grant,
submitted to Alamo Area Master Naturalist Chapter, September 2016.
ACORN Training, Field Trips and Related Activities, Fall 2016
Year Two of the Northside ISD Environmental Education grant from EPA is launching
with gusto. The NISD grant is expanding Project ACORN to eight new schools in NISD,
and EPA requires NISD to “pass through” 25% of the grant funds to supporting
organizations. For this grant, those organizations are The San Antonio River Authority,
The STEAM Center at Our Lady of the Lake University, and the Alamo Area chapter of
the Texas Master Naturalists.
For Year Two, Alamo Area Master Naturalist Chapter have received $4400 that will fund
Master Naturalist volunteer training for 6 people from Northside ISD ACORN schools,
and provide tools, supplies and equipment to train other MN volunteers. At the close of
the two year grant, based on these training experiences and field trip and campus
experiences, AAMN will deliver a “Best Practices” guide for ACORN volunteers. Also,
AAMN will contribute a standard Pollinator Garden plant label format, that will hopefully
be adopted across the Project ACORN schools.
This fall, each organization will have multiple activities and events, some for teacher
training, others for putting ACORN methods into practice with students. The OLLU
STEAM center will hold 4 full days of training for teachers and Master Naturalists and
other ACORN volunteers. In addition, SARA and AAMN will host 8 off campus field
trips, reaching teachers and student groups of 30 ACORN kids. It should be a very
productive season of experiential place-based learning.
The OLLU STEAM center will hold 4 full days of training for teachers and Master
Naturalists and other ACORN volunteers. Dr. Peggy Carnahan has modified her
existing graduate course to meet Project ACORN needs. This training is free to
participants, but lunch is not provided.
The Contact person is Amalia Sollars
Project A.C.O.R.N. Coordinator, Northside ISD, [email protected].
Wednesday September 28. ACORN Training Day 1 - Soil measurement
Martin Elementary School. 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM
730 Canterbury Drive, San Antonio, TX,
Tuesday October 4. ACORN Training Day 2 - Native Plants and Data Entry. 8:00 AM to
3:00 PM
Villarreal Elementary School
2902 White Tail Dr, San Antonio, TX 78228,
(concluding with a visit to Rainbow Gardens Nursery on Bandera Rd. )
Tuesday October 18. ACORN Training Day 3 - Water Quality and Data Entry. Texas
Stream Team Certification training. 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Our Lady of the Lake University, Metz Bldg, Turn west off 24th Street onto Providence
St., Metz Bldg, is the third building on the left and is 4 stories. Texas Stream Team
training is open to all, you don’t even need to be a MN, though 18 is the max training
group. Trainers are coming from San Marcos Meadows Center.
Saturday, October 29. ACORN Training Day 4 Understanding Your ACORN Campus,
(how to put ACORN into practice at your own school), 8:30am - 3:30pm
Hobby Middle School
11843 Vance Jackson Rd, San Antonio, TX 78230
San Antonio River Authority will conduct 4 ACORN field trips at Acequia Park, - 8500
Mission Parkway, 78223, similar to the field trips run last spring for the first 4 ACORN
schools. The activities are designed and organized by SARA staff, but each field trip
needs Master Naturalist volunteers, willing to assist with bird watching, tree
scavenger/GPS coordinate hunt and nature walks through the park. A training will be
provided for those interested.
The Contact person is Kayla Gasker at [email protected] or 210-302-3259
Wednesday, October 5. Project ACORN Field Trip- Esparza Elementary
Acequia Park- 8500 Mission Parkway, 78223
9am-1pm
Thursday, October 13, Project ACORN Field Trip- Lieck Elementary School
Acequia Park- 8500 Mission Parkway, 78223
9am-1pm
Tuesday, October 18. Project ACORN Field Trip- Braun Station Elementary
Acequia Park- 8500 Mission Parkway, 78223
9am-1pm
Thursday, October 20. Project ACORN Field Trip- Passmore Elementary
Acequia Park- 8500 Mission Parkway, 78223
9am-1pm
New to ACORN for Year Two is the Butterfly Learning Center Field Trips, on 4 dates in
October. The Butterfly Learning Center is a project of AAMN, located in Phil
Hardberger Park East. Year One ACORN funding helped construct the Butterfly
Learning Center and NISD has specifically requested ACORN field trips for this fall.
BLC street address is 13203 Blanco Rd., but it is actually past the parking lot, behind a
locked gate and next to a large conventional vegetable garden. There is a lot of work
underway to prepare the BLC for the “opening” and the first student groups, with Drake
White leading the work. Each field trips will need 4 to 6 MN volunteers to assist in the
BLC and the hatch house, or on Susan Campbell’s nature walk around Phil Hardberger
Park.
Contact person for volunteering for Butterfly Learning Center is
Drake White, AAMN Class #36
(210) 844-2381, [email protected].
October 11. Time TBD, tentatively 10 am. BLC Basics. Drake White will hold a new
orientation session for prospective BLC volunteers, whether work day volunteers or field
trip volunteers. A lot of plants in BLC are new even to MN’s and the animals (eggs,
caterpillars, chrysalis, and butterfly) are fragile and almost invisible or well camouflaged,
so BLC volunteers need to learn how to handle both plants and animals.
AAMN, with the enormous help of Amalia Sollars, the NISD ACORN Coordinator, will
host 4 NISD ACORN school field trips of 30 students to the Butterfly Learning Center
and Hardberger Park. Five dates have been offered to the four schools and teachers
are still sorting out their plans. The available dates are Monday 17th, Wednesday 19th,
Thursday 20th, Monday 24th, and Tuesday 25th . All field trips will begin at 9 and end
about 1 pm.
As of Monday, September 19, am. two dates were set, October 20 (Helotes Elementary
School) and October 24 (Passmore Elementary School).
Contact person for MN’s volunteering to assist with the ACORN field trips is
Lissa Martinez, (210) 824-1485, [email protected].
Lastly, In November, Project ACORN is proposing to do a demonstration on site for the
CAST (state science teachers’ professional organization) meeting which is being held in
San Antonio from November 9 through 12. The CAST conference is at the convention
center and ACORN wants to set up a “field trip” under the Convention Center in the
riverwalk area known as the Grotto. The proposal is to provide a multi-level
educational experience for CAST participants and ACORN students with SARA, OLLU,
and TMN representatives, showcasing the Carnahan Elementary and Franklin
Elementary Schools Creek Patrol kids. If this grand proposal is accepted, MN’s will
assist with water testing and lead a brief nature hike at the Grotto and the adjacent
riverwalk and hemisfair grounds. AAMN preparations for this CAST demonstration will
include designing and nature hike.
respectfully submitted, Lissa Martinez, ACORN liaison for the AAMN chapter.