RICHMOND — The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation recently announced nine Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience projects have received grants for the 2025-26 school year.
The annual state program, administered by DCR’s Office of Environmental Education, awarded a total of $250,000 in funding.
Selected projects:
- Culpeper Soil and Water Conservation District
- Middle school students, educators in Culpeper, Greene, Madison, Orange and Rappahannock County Public Schools
- Henrico County Public Schools
- Henrico County Public School students, educators
- Horizons
- Portsmouth Virginia students
- James River Association
- Hampton City Public School students, educators
- Maymont
- Richmond City Public School elementary students, educators
- Old Dominion University
- Prince William County Public School students, educators
- Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District
- Prince William County Public School educators
- Reston Association
- Reston Virginia youth, educators
- The Clifton Institute
- Fauquier County Public School students
The MWEE projects are intended to encourage K-12 students to think critically about Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay watershed and cultivate their environmental literacy, according to DCR. They are learner-centered field investigations and action projects aligned with grade-level standards and focused on local watershed health.
As a signatory to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, Virginia notes it is committed to increasing “understanding of the watershed through participation in teacher-supported, meaningful watershed educational experiences and rigorous, inquiry-based instruction.”
