News Releases from Region 03

EPA awards Goochland County teacher with Presidential Innovation Award

PHILADELPHIA (August 17, 2015) --The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded middle school teacher Anne Moore from the Goochland County Public Schools in Virginia with the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators (PIAEE).

"Anne Moore has spent 16 years teaching students about the importance of environmental conservation and how their actions affect health and the environment," said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin. "Through her hard work and dedication, students leave the classroom with a better understanding of the delicate balance between humans and our environment, and share that knowledge with families and communities."

Moore has developed programs that encourage her students to think critically to solve environmental problems. One program she developed, "Trash to Treasure," requires students to analyze local waste management practices and research how those practices alter the environment.

Another of her projects had students conduct research on ways that illegally discarded tires can be retrieved and recycled. This project led to Chesterfield County implementing an annual "Tire Amnesty Day," that allows members of the community to bring unwanted tires for proper disposal.

Moore's students have also participated in a Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab Study and a Prothonotary Warbler Investigative Study. Both programs involved hands-on aspects where students examined the components of an ecosystem.

For more information on the PIAEE awards, visit: http://www2.epa.gov/education/presidential-innovation-award-environmental-educators-piaee-winners .